At Melbourne’s weapons expo, arms dealers snack on popcorn a grenade’s throw from tanks and autonomous robots

An Abrams tank on display inside the the Land Forces International Land Defence Exposition at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre on Wednesday. Outside the convention centre, protesters clashed with police. Photograph: Joel Carrett/AAP

The exhibitors inside the Land Forces expo must have wondered if they had missed a trick.

It was the opening morning of the three-day event, but instead of being stuck inside the sterile confines of the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, they could have been on the battlefield outside, giving a live demonstration of their wares.