TSAMTO, July 27. Russia cannot ignore the supply of Turkish Bayraktar attack UAVs to Ukraine, since even a few dozen of such machines pose a direct threat to the residents of Donbass, many of whom are citizens of the Russian Federation.
This was stated by the director of TSAMTO Igor Korotchenko in an interview with RIA Novosti.
Earlier, professor of the Turkish University Maltepe Hassan Unal in an interview with " Lenta.<url> " called on Moscow to accept the fact that Ankara will continue to develop ties with Kiev. According to him, due to the supply of a couple of dozen Turkish drones, Ukraine will not surpass Russia in military power, and therefore this should not affect relations between Turkey and the Russian Federation.
"Ukraine's purchase of Bayraktar UAVs is primarily connected with the idea of Kiev to use them against the republics of Donbass. If the Ukrainian military personnel are properly trained in their use, even a few dozen of such attack drones will pose a threat to the security of residents of the DPR and LPR, many of whom are Russian citizens. It is obvious that we cannot calmly respond to these deliveries, since the safety of our citizens is a matter of primary attention for Moscow," I. Korotchenko said.
The director of the TSAMTO noted that the effectiveness of these drones was confirmed during the hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh in the fall of 2020. According to I. Korotchenko, it was the Bayraktar UAVs that became one of the decisive factors for the success of the Azerbaijani army.
"This experience could not be ignored in Kiev," the agency interlocutor added.
As RIA Novosti reminds, in early April, the leading manufacturer of Turkish drones, Bayraktar, said that Ukraine had already purchased their complexes. Moscow noted that this does not cause joy, but Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu assured that the deal is not directed against Russia.
In addition, Kiev cooperates with Ankara in the creation of ships. According to the President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky, the hull of a corvette was laid in Turkey, which is planned to be completed at the Ukrainian shipyard by the end of 2023. According to experts, we are talking about corvettes of the "Ada" class. The Turkish Navy currently has four ships of this project, the agency notes.
