ISTANBUL (Reuters) – An accord which Saudi Arabia signed to buy Turkish drones entails cooperation in technology transfer and joint production, the Turkish company Baykar said on Tuesday in a statement.
The contract, signed during Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to Saudi Arabia, was one of several lucrative deals that the Turkish president has so far secured on a Gulf trip being held after a diplomatic push to repair ties with Gulf Arab powers.
“With the comprehensive agreement, there will cooperation on technology transfer and joint production in order to advance the high technology development capability of the two countries,” the statement said.
Baykar said 75% of its revenues had come from exports since it began drone research and development in 2003. Last year, its exports amounted to $1.18 billion, with its turnover amounting to $1.4 billion.
It said it had signed export agreements with 30 countries for its Bayraktar TB2 combat drone and with six countries for the larger Bayraktar Akinci combat drone.
(Reporting by Can Sezer; Writing by Daren Butler; Editing by Huseyin Hayatsever and Alison Williams)
