Slovakia Considers Buying Bayraktar TB2 UCAVs
Slovakia has expressed interest and signaled it could become the second European Union member state to acquire Bayraktar TB2s. The intention was reaffirmed by Slovakia's Defence Minister Jaro NAD, who on Wednesday said talks on acquiring unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) for the country's armed forces were moving forward.
"Works on acquiring drones for the Slovak military (are) moving forward," NAD said in a tweet after meeting with Haluk BAYRAKTAR, the CEO of the Turkish UAV manufacturer Baykar.
"Good talk today with Mr. BAYRAKTAR from Turkey, and discussions with other drone producers (are) ongoing," he said in the tweet featuring a model of the Bayraktar TB2 UCAV with Slovak markings.
The battle-tested drones have already proven their capabilities in Libya, Syria, and the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Turkey has also sold Kyiv several batches of Bayraktar TB2s. The TB2 has also been used by Qatar, Azerbaijan, and Poland, which in May last year became the first European Union and NATO member state to acquire drones from Turkey. Many other nations have also hinted at buying the UAVs.
