PARIS -- Eurosatory, the world's largest land warfare trade show, kicked off Mondaywith an array of international defense companies displaying everything from armored tactical vehicles to reversible camouflage. It's the best opportunity to see what sits in the rest of the world's sandbox.
A shrinking national defense budget has forced U.S. defense companies to look toward outside markets to remain profitable. Meanwhile, the Pentagon is trying to stretch its dollar further by investing in existing programs versus developing new weapons and vehicles. The Army's Ground Combat Vehicle is an example where U.S. official have already thought hard about acquiring international vehicles to avoid the steep price tag of building a new one.
Military.com correspondents will be here all week covering the land warfare show and posting to DoDBuzz, Defense Tech, KitUp! Follow us on Twitter @militarydotcom, @DoDBuzz, @DefenseTech and @_MichaelHoffman.
Expect to see weapons and vehicles that don't usually make it to the U.S. trade shows. A quick walk of the floor is a quick reminder this is not an Association of the U.S. Army show, where the focus is the U.S.
