Kyrgyzstan has bought a new batch of Turkish military unmanned aerial systems, a government representative revealed.
The systems are the Turkish Aerospace Industries’ Aksungur and Anka, presidential press service head Daiyrbek Orunbekov wrote on his Facebook account.
Orunbekov added that the systems are already in the country.
The platforms are in addition to two other Turkish drones — Baykar’s Bayraktar TB2 and Akinci — the country acquired earlier.
Border Clashes
“After the clashes in Batken [with Tajikistan], special attention is being paid to strengthening the armed forces and security,” Orunbekov wrote.
“Modern military equipment such as Bayraktar, Aksungur, Akinci, Anka, unprecedented air defense systems, were purchased and arrived in Kyrgyzstan.”
The Central Asian country has been operating the Bayraktar TB2 since December 2021. The government hasn’t revealed how many drones it uses. However, reported media estimates three are in service.
Bayraktar’s Role Against Tajikistan
Kyrgyzstan deployed the drones in September 2022 during border clashes with neighboring Tajikistan.
The drone reportedly helped the country retake five villages, destroying at least one Tajik T-72 tank.
Tajikistan acknowledged the drone’s involvement in the clashes, which claimed 41 lives on the Tajik side and 59 on the Kyrgyz.
A month later, Kyrgyzstan National Security Committee chairperson Kamchybek Tashieva announced on social media that the country had acquired the Akinci drone.