WARSAW - A Polish government minister visited Malaysia yesterday to hammer out details of a multi-million dollar deal for Polish tanks to be bought by Kuala Lumpur, the PAP news agency said.

Deputy Polish economy minister Andrzej Szarawarski, who will meet with Malaysian defense and economy ministers, said the preparation of the contract conditions will take several months.

Szarawarski said he will use the visit to address the political issues brought up by the contract, while "the tank manufacturer and the Malaysian government will negotiate all the other details," PAP reported.

64 tanks and armoured vehicle

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad announced the deal during a visit to Warsaw in March. Polish officials said it could be worth more than RM950 million.

The exact number of tanks to be purchased remains open, but Polish Defense Minister Jerzy Szmajdzinski said in March when the deal was announced that Warsaw had offered 64 tanks and armoured vehicles.

The sum could reach up to RM1.14 billion with supplementary equipment and services.

Malaysia wants to pay for part of the deal in commodities rather than cash.