JAKARTA - The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is said to be in negotiations with Turkish companies regarding interest in drones that claim names on several battlefields, including the Russian-Ukraine war, a report said.
Talks with Baykar focused on supplies of up to 120 Bayraktar TB2, Middle East Eye reported, citing people familiar with the negotiations.
Potential deals could reach about $2 billion, including with ammunition, command and control centers, to training, the report said.
It was stated that negotiations between Baykar and state companies within the arms procurement agency Emirate Tawazun have been ongoing since March.
The talks came as Turkey and the UAE worked to build an economic bridge after years of rifts.
Cooperation in various industries, including defense, marks the latest reciprocal visit by leaders of the two countries.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made a return visit to the UAE in mid-February, following UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan's (MBZ) trip to Ankara at the end of November last year, marking a significant step towards overcoming the dispute.
If the drone deal continues, the Middle East Eye report also claims several components of TB2 can be produced at the Baykar plant in the UAE.
Bayraktar TB2 is known for issuing some of the most advanced anti-aircraft systems, advanced artillery systems and armored vehicles, the capabilities it shows in the conflicts in Syria, Iraq, Libya and Nagorno-Karabakh and Ukraine.
This has become the current factor, as the spearhead of Turkey's global defense export push. Baykar has signed a deal to sell TB2 to 24 countries and has reached a point where exports accounted for almost all of its revenue this year, said the CEO of Haluk Bayraktar earlier this month.
The high demand for drones makes Baykar now have a waiting list of up to three years. To date, Baykar has produced more than 400 TB2 drones.
To fulfill the orders that come, Baykar plans to increase production capacity, including with factories in Ukraine. Currently, the company is capable of producing 200 Bayraktar TB2 per year. This figure is expected to increase to 500 units per year.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
