The drone war continues even as Canada has suspended the sale of military drone technology to Turkey over allegations that the technology is being used in the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
Armenian officials have reportedly accused Azerbaijan of using Turkish drones to conduct attacks against its military forces as well as civilian infrastructure across Nagorno-Karabakh and in Armenia itself. Azerbaijan and Turkey have denied these claims.
A spokesperson for the Armenian Ministry of Defence said another Turkish Bayraktar TB2 drone was shot down by Armenian air defence units during fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh on Thursday. Defence officials in Armenia displayed parts of the Bayraktar TB2 drone and its Canadian-made optical and target acquisition systems, as well as its Rotax engine.
During this conflict, Asia Times has suggested that Russia may have utilised its ‘Belladonna’ Krasukha jamming system in Armenia to counter Azerbaijan’s use of Turkish Bayraktar and suicide drones. Reportedly, ‘Belladonna’ is credited with knocking out at least nine Turkish Bayraktar drones used by Azerbaijan. It is a broadband multifunctional jamming station that was used successfully to defend the Hmeymim air base in Syria from swarming drones.