A large delegation of representatives of Turkish military-technical companies led by the head of the Defense Industry Committee, Haluk Gergün
President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev received it personally.
It is already possible to draw preliminary conclusions about which component of the Azerbaijani armed forces will be transformed first.
The most intensive negotiations took place with representatives of REPCON, MKE and ASFAT companies. In particular, the issue of establishing the production of 155-mm artillery ammunition in Azerbaijan was raised.
Azerbaijan will gradually transfer its artillery units to the 155 mm caliber, moving away from the Soviet 152 mm.
A photograph of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Haluk Gergun with an image of a KAAN fighter can certainly indicate the prospect of the Azerbaijani Air Force switching to these combat aircraft. But what is already happening is the improvement of the performance of Azerbaijani aviation due to modernization by Turkish companies.
During the visit, the issue was raised about the further implementation of the project to modernize the Su-25 attack aircraft of the Azerbaijan Air Force, implemented by TUSAŞ. The Azerbaijani Air Force still operates Soviet Su-25 attack aircraft, which require updating, in particular the integration of modern weapons and reconnaissance systems.
Last year, the first Azerbaijani Su-25 was presented, modernized by the Turkish company Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI), presented under the designation ML (Modernized LAÇIN).
The issue of purchasing Korkut short-range anti-aircraft artillery systems for the needs of the Azerbaijani air defense forces was raised with representatives of the ASELSAN company. These systems, as the experience of the war in Ukraine has shown, are very effective against small objects, such as Shahed-136 kamikaze drones. In turn, Azerbaijan’s proximity to a neighbor such as Iran makes the relevance of such systems very acute.
The issue of acquiring Gurz anti-aircraft missile and artillery systems was also raised, which clearly indicates the plans of the Azerbaijani leadership to modernize its air defense forces and at least find a modern alternative to the ZSU-23-4 Shilka and a number of other models of the Soviet anti-aircraft component.
Azerbaijan intends not only to modernize, but also to unify the range of weapons of its army, focusing on the Turkish military-industrial complex. On the one hand, this will significantly update and strengthen the potential of the Azerbaijani army, on the other hand, it will reduce dependence on Soviet and Russian weapons, which are morally and technically inappropriate to the challenges of modern war.
It is obvious that Azerbaijan intends to begin a serious rearmament of its army in the near future, and Turkey will play an important role in this process.
The Azerbaijani press reports this.
en.apa.az
