If Moscow receives weapons from Ankara, Russia would have access to the military technology of a NATO member for the first time. According to the Kremlin, President Putin wants to talk about buying drones at the forthcoming meeting with his Turkish counterpart Erdogan.
In the course of its war in Ukraine, Russia is interested in the Turkish Bayraktar TB2 combat drone, which Kyiv has also successfully used there. The issue of military-technical cooperation will also be discussed at a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Sochi on the Black Sea on August 5, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Russia had previously denied speculation that it would buy drones from Iran. Putin and Erdogan met in the Iranian capital Tehran last week. Now Peskow said that both sides also talked about such sensitive issues, showing how close the cooperation between the two countries is.
Russia had previously sold its S-400 missile defense system to Turkey, which is a NATO member, to the chagrin of the United States. According to reports, there should now be a return service from the Turkish side. Erdogan had previously reported on Putin's interest. Erdogan said on Tuesday that Putin had suggested working with Turkey on the Baykar drones, according to the broadcaster CNN Türk. A corresponding factory could be founded in the United Arab Emirates. The Emirates would have offered that, said Erdogan.
The Turkish combat drone Bayraktar TB2 is considered an export hit. The drones have already been used in several conflicts, for example on the side of Azerbaijan in the conflict with Armenia over the Nagorno-Karabakh region. It is also considered accurate and effective and can stay in the air for up to 27 hours.
The Ukraine also uses Bayraktar drones. At the beginning of Putin's war of aggression, videos of Russian tanks allegedly being destroyed by these drones circulated on the Internet. Should Russia develop the drones together with Turkey, Moscow would also have access to the technology of a NATO member state.
