BEIRUT, LEBANON (2:50 P.M.) – The commander of the Ukrainian Navy, Oleksiy Neizhpapa, announced on Monday that “his country is waiting in 2021 for the Turkish drones and cruisers.”
He pointed out that “it is expected that during the current year, Turkish drones and cruisers will be purchased, to strengthen the power of the Ukrainian Navy,” noting that “Ukraine will use Turkish drones at sea and on land.”
“Thanks to the ADA corvettes, which will be jointly produced with Turkey, Ukraine will be able to reach a production capacity that conforms to NATO standards,” Neizhpapa said, as reported by the Anadolu Agency of Turkey.
Ukraine’s decision to purchase Turkish drones comes after seeing their success in Libya, Syria and Karabakh, three conflicts where Turkey was closely involved in military operations.
Among the Turkish drones that were showcased in these three conflicts was the Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), which wreaked havoc on the enemy defenses.
According to some analysts, the Bayraktar TB2 proved incredibly effective against the Russian-made air defenses of the Syrian, Libyan and Armenian air defenses, as they destroyed a number of Pantsir S-1 systems.
Given Ukraine’s rocky relationship with neighboring Russia, the decision to purchase these drones from Turkey comes at an interesting time, given some indications that the conflict in Donbass may breakout once again.
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