Saudi signs deal for Turkish drones

AFP | Riyadh

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

A Turkish firm will provide drones to Saudi Arabia, Riyadh said yesterday following a visit by Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that aims to attract foreign investment.

Several contracts, including the drone deal with the privately-owned Baykar, were signed during a meeting between Erdogan and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the Red Sea port of Jeddah on Monday, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said.

Haluk Bayraktar, CEO of the drone manufacturer which is co-run by one of Erdogan’s sons-in- laws, in a tweet called the deal “the biggest defence and aviation export contract in the history of the Turkish Republic”.

The value of the deal has not been made public. Erdogan, who in May elections won another five-year term, was in Saudi Arabia to kick off a Gulf tour seeking to drum up support for Turkey’s faltering economy.