For China the civil war currently sowing destruction across Syria is an excellent marketing opportunity writes Tim Fernholz:

• China supports the incumbent Syrian government, however its weapons have ended up in the hands of Syrian rebels through Sudan which has resold its weapons for cash.
• Videos are now popping up depicting rebels using Chinese weapons, and Chinese analysts point out that this is an excellent way to prove the value of Chinese weapons and give arms sales a boost.
• Since the rebels aren’t trained military recruits, the thinking goes that if they can use them it will prove to others that Chinese weapons can be used by anybody.
• Supplying weapons to countries around the world is a competitive, cut-throat business, and today China has just 5% of the market.
• However things aren’t going too well – the weapons currently in use by the rebels often malfunction and kill or injure nearby allies.

Find out which weapons the rebels are using, the countries that control the international arms trade, and more over here.

Source: Quartz