After changing the rules of war in Syria, Libya and now in occupied Upper Karabakh, Turkey’s drones may soon touch the skies over Balkans.
Serbia has stepped forward to have expressed the wish to buy Turkish drones manufactured by Bayraktar Technologies.
Lavishing praise over the capacity and capability of Bayraktar drones, the country’s President Aleksandar Vucic said Serbia is “very interested in drone systems and will certainly buy more of them in the future”.
“We will see whether we will reach an agreement with the Turkish side. In any case, these are very good drones. I have to give the Turkish manufacturers their due,” Vucic told reporters on Monday at the Palace of Serbia in the capital Belgrade.
The Bayraktar Tactical Block 2 (TB2) armed UAV is in use by the Turkish Armed Forces and Turkey’s Security Directorate since 2015.
The latest call for defense purchase from Turkey comes after Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev praised Bayraktar drones for aiding the country’s battle against Armenia to liberate occupied Upper Karabakh area.
“Thanks to the advanced Turkish drones owned by the Azerbaijan military, our casualties on the front have shrunk,” Aliyev told the Turkish state channel TRT Haber on Monday.
Serbia’s Vucic said he wants to bolster Serbia’s security. It appears the Serbian president is convinced about the Bayraktar production and the country is serious about its procurement in near future.
“We do not threaten or attack anybody. However, we should always be ready to avoid any surprises. In this context, we are taking the necessary steps,” he asserted.
He said that the UAV systems are expensive but “very smart” investments.
Ukraine has also expressed interest in buying the Turkish drones after Bayraktar hit dozens of Russian air defense systems from Syria to Libya and now in occupied Upper Karabakh.
Vadsim Nozdri, CEO of the Ukrainian state-owned defense industry firm Ukrspetsexport, has reportedly said that his country is planning to buy 48 new Bayraktar TB-2 for the armed forces.
Besides growing demand for Turkish drones, Ukraine has said it will supply advanced missile engines to Turkey, for new cruise missile with deep-strike capability.
Reports claim that a number of contracts have been signed for the purchase of cutting-edge aircraft engine components for the new AI-35 turbojet engines that will equip new Turkish cruise missiles.
The AI-35 engines will be used in the production of new cruise missiles in Turkey.
