Israel's defense industry is showcasing cutting-edge technologies at the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) annual meeting and exposition, which opened Monday in Washington, D.C., Israeli Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv said in a statement.

Ten Israeli companies are represented this year under the aegis of the ministry's international defense cooperation division SIBAT, a body that oversees Israel's military and security exports, including knowledge, to both governments and private clients.

Among them is ESC Baz, a leading provider of advanced surveillance, observation and reconnaissance systems for defense and homeland security applications, which is unveiling its new- generation Universal Hand-Held Control and Monitoring unit. Meprolight, a supplier of electro-optic system for military and law enforcement, is presenting MEPRO, a compact 4X telescopic day sight for rifles.

Other companies participating in the three-day event include ROBOTEAM, which is displaying a new family of easy-to-operate robots that provide a 360-degree video/audio monitoring; Nimda Diesel Engineering, a company specializing in upgrading tanks' automotive systems that has already signed contracts with militaries worldwide; Pulse Inteco Systems, which is showcasing its recently-launched MESLAS fire-controlled riflescope, a patented system that lowers of the risk of sniper detection; and SYS Technologies' Medi-T, a compact, mobile unit that rapidly creates a clean operating room for military and civilian emergency medical teams.

Brig. Gen. Shmaya Avieli, director of SIBAT, said the Israeli presence at the event "offers the opportunity for fruitful cooperation" with both the American and the international defense industry.

"At a time when defense budgets around the world are shrinking.. . we view this collaboration as a strategic resource that will contribute to the economic soundness and security of the cooperating countries," Avieli said, according to a statement.