President Recep Tayyip Erdogan allegedly told colleagues at a top party meeting that Russian leader Vladimir Putin proposed a military deal during a meeting in Tehran. In particular, he wanted to create a production enterprise of Bayraktar drones in Russia.
This was reported by CNN Turk sources.
According to the publication, Erdogan told a party meeting on July 25 that Putin approached him during a recent meeting in Tehran with a proposal to conclude a deal with the Turkish firm Baykar.
"Putin told me that he wants to work with Baykar. He offered to create a factory in Russia, as they did in the UAE," Erdogan said.
Although a company spokesperson denies it, Baykar is indeed in the process of setting up a production line in the UAE, according to a source familiar with the matter.
At the same time, Baykar CEO Khaluk Bayraktar said that he will not sell his drones to Putin.
"There are strategic relations between Turkey and Ukraine, especially in the field of aviation and space. Turkey supports Ukraine with armed drone technologies. We have not transferred or supplied anything to Russia. We would never do such a thing," he emphasized.