In the first nine months of 2020, Azerbaijan purchased a total of $123 million in defense and aviation equipment from Turkey, sales which include drones, rocket launchers, ammunition, etc. This comes in stark contrast to Azerbaijan’s purchases in previous years.
Notably, in the first nine months of 2019, the country purchased only $20.7 million worth of the same equipment. Per Reuters, “Turkey’s military exports to its ally Azerbaijan have risen six-fold this year.” Even more striking, more than $100 million of those purchases from Turkey occurred between the months of August and September. Data from the National Post shows that “sales jumped from $278,880 in the month of July to $36 million in the month of August, and $77.1 million in just September.”
Turkey’s weapon production has also increased in the past few months, significantly helping to supply this demand. According to Turkish authorities, the country has become the fourth largest drone manufacturer. This comes after Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan increased domestic military production in order to reduce reliance on Western arms. This comes as a great advantage to Azerbaijan, who has wasted no time in turning to Turkish aid for military backing.
“Ankara is very determined in providing Baku with its needs,” says Istanbul-based defense analyst Turan Oguz. “The strong defence cooperation between Azerbaijan and Turkey is getting stronger by the day.” For now, the defense pact between Turkey and Azerbaijan appears tighter than ever, and data on both the production and sale of arms is only showing increasing growth.
Also Read: Turkish F-16 Fighter Jets – How They Reached Azerbaijan and What They Do in the Armenian Airspace
