MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th August, 2020) South Africa and the Philippines will not send delegations to Russia's Army 2020 defense forum, which is due to take place in the Moscow Region in late August, due to the COVID-19-related restrictions, but will be represented by the defense attaches, their respective embassies in Moscow told Sputnik.
"The [South African] Defence Attache at the Embassy, Brig General M Masinda, and his Deputy, Colonel A Mangcotywa will attend the exhibition [at Patriot Park, one of the forum's venues]," the South African embassy's first secretary, Nontobeko Duma, said.
So far, no formal meetings are expected between the attache and the representatives from other countries during the forum. However, Masinda and Mangcotywa "will be interacting with other countries to share the experiences during the exhibition," according to the first secretary.
South Africa participated in the forum's exhibition at Patriot Park in 2019. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the international travel restrictions, there will be no delegation from South Africa at the forum this year, she said.
"There will also be a limited participation in the competition by few Military Trainees who are studying at the Military institutions and based in the Russian Federation but not in a bigger scale," she added.
The Philippine embassy in Moscow also confirmed to Sputnik that Defense Attache to Russia Colonel Dennis Pastor had been invited for the forum. No delegation from the Philippines will attend the event, the embassy added.
The Army 2020 international defense industry forum will take place from August 23-29 and present over 300 pieces of Russian weapons and equipment, as well as 25,000 exhibits from industrial enterprises for a free inspection. For the first time, its duration has been increased from six to seven days.
So far, over 70 out of 133 countries invited to attend the defense forum have confirmed their participation, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.
