ADEX — Azerbaijan International Defence Exhibition

ADEX (Azerbaijan International Defence Exhibition) is an international defence show held at the Baku Expo Center. It is organised on the initiative of the Ministry of Defence Industry with the support of the Ministry of Defence, alongside Securex Caspian, an exhibition of internal security, protection and rescue equipment.

History

The first ADEX took place in 2014, followed by editions in 2016 and 2018. No show was held in 2020; the 4th ADEX followed in 2022 and the 5th in 2024. Participation has grown each time, making the show the main defence platform of the South Caucasus and Caspian region.

ADEX 2026

The 6th edition ran from 30 September to 2 October 2026. ADEX and Securex Caspian brought together 277 companies from 30 countries, with 14 national pavilions and 59 foreign delegations from 39 countries. Record participation required an additional hall, and for the first time a pavilion was given over to a national exposition. Türkiye was the most widely represented country, and several US companies took part for the first time.

President Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva toured the show on 30 September. The Ministry of Defence stand displayed artillery systems, aviation equipment and unmanned systems in service with the Azerbaijani Army. Local exhibitors included the Azersilah Defence Industry Holding, founded in 2023, the Vektor group, AZDEF and others.

Foreign exhibitors included Türkiye's Baykar, ASELSAN, Roketsan and Dearsan; Israel's IAI, Rafael and Elbit Systems; Italy's Leonardo; the UAE's EDGE Group; Germany's Rheinmetall; Britain's BAE Systems; Pakistan's aeronautical complex and Uzbekistan's Defence Industry Agency, among others. Contracts with Türkiye worth more than $500 million were signed during the show.