MANAGUA, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- The Nicaraguan army displayed its new T-72 combat tanks bought from Russia in an equipment exhibition opened Monday in Managua.
General Julio Cesar Aviles, the commander-in-chief of Nicaragua's armed forces, told reporters that Nicaragua was amidst an overhaul of its armed forces and that the T-72 tanks would replace T-54 and T-55 tanks, bought from the former Soviet Union.
"The modernization and development (of the army)...includes the revision and purchasing of new equipment, such as BTR armored vehicles...and the T-72 tanks, which will replace the old T-54 and T-55 tanks," Aviles said.
According to official figures, Nicaragua bought 50 T-721B1 tanks at a cost of 80 million U.S. dollars.
On Aug. 12, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega said he had asked the U.S. and Russian governments to help his country improve its ability to fight drug trafficking and organized crime.
Ortega promised that his country would spend much of its national budget to stop drugs from crossing Nicaragua on its way to the U.S. and other countries.
