Tag Archives: arms

India wins $40m deal to supply Armenia with military radars

MARCH 18 (The Bulletin) — India has won a $40m military supply deal to sell radars to Armenia, media reported. Media in India reported that the deal was signed on March 1 and boosts India’s military status in the region, normally considered Russia’s sphere of influence. India has been trying to boost its influence in the Central Asia and South Caucasus.

ENDS

— This story was first published in issue 440 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin

— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2020

Israelis sell suicide drones to Azerbaijan

Leave a Reply

TBILISI/JAN. 11 (The Conway Bulletin) — Azerbaijan has become the first foreign buyer of Israel’s so-called suicide drone, the Jerusalem Post reported. Relations between Azerbaijan and Israel have blossomed in recent years with Israel buying Azerbaijan oil and gas and Azerbaijan buying Israeli weapons. Azerbaijan is still officially at war with Armenia over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh.
END

>>This story was first published in issue 397 of The Conway Bulletin on Jan. 20 2019

Azerbaijan is building a warship with Turkey

Leave a Reply

SEPT. 29 (The Conway Bulletin) – Turkish and Azerbaijani shipyards are teaming up to jointly build four warships, the Trend newspaper reported. The deal is yet another indication of the strength of Azerbaijan-Turkey relations. From pictures, the naval ships appeared to be a new class of patrol boats.
-ENDS-
>>This story was published in issue 387 of The Conway Bulletin on Oct. 1 2018

Israeli drone-maker may have attacked Armenian soldiers

Leave a Reply

AUG. 29 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) –The Israeli government has suspended the licence of weapons manufacturer Aeronautics Defense Systems for allegedly showing off a new drone weapon to Azerbaijani clients by attacking Armenian forces in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

The case shows both the growing military partnership between Israel and Azerbaijan and also the lengths that Israeli defence companies will go to win contracts with their Azerbaijani counterparts.

Aeronautics Defense Systems made the disclosure to the Israeli stock market.
“The Defense Ministry’s Defense Export Controls Agency informed the company that it was suspending the marketing and export permit for the company’s Orbiter 1K model UAV to a significant customer,” it said in a statement.

A couple of weeks earlier, Israeli newspaper had reported on a leaked complaint made to the Israeli defence ministry. It said that officials from Aeronautics Defense Systems had travelled to Azerbaijan in July to show off their Orbiter 1K suicide drone that is packed with explosives and deliberately flown into an enemy position.

During the demonstration, the reports said, Azerbaijani officials asked Aeronautics Defense Systems to attack an Armenian position in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The two controllers of the drone refused but two other members of the Aeronautics Defense Systems team took the controls and attacked the Armenian position.

The alliance between Azerbaijan and Israel has been growing. Azerbaijan is one of the biggest importers of Israeli military kit and in 2012 Israel also reportedly made a deal with Azerbaijan to use its airbases in a preemptive attack on neighbouring Iran.
Armenia-backed forces currently control the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh which hey fought over in the 1990s.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 342, published on Sept. 7 2017)

Kazakh military orders two more transport planes

Leave a Reply

APRIL 22 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Kazakhstan’s military ordered two more Airbus C295 transport planes, bringing the total it now owns to eight. Kazakhstan is in the midst of push to modernise and upgrade its military. The C295 has become the workhorse of choice for many militaries. It can carry 70 soldiers or 50 paratroopers.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 326, published on April 28 2017)

Azerbaijani arms sales hit $101m

Leave a Reply

APRIL 11 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Azerbaijani defence minister Yaver Jamalov estimated that the value of the country’s defence industry was around $101m this year and that it will sell arms and military equipment to 10 countries. Azerbaijan has invested heavily into building up its arms industry. It has boasted that arms it manufactures were used effectively in April 2016 when tension around the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh spilled over into battles with Armenia- backed rebels for a couple of days.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 324, published on April 13 2017)

Georgia to sell its fighter jets

Leave a Reply

APRIL 12 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Speaking to parliament, Georgian defence minister Levan Izoria said that the Georgian military intended to sell its 12 Su-25 Soviet-era jets and use the cash raised to buy helicopters and drones. The Georgian military said earlier in the year that it was going to ditch using fighter jets altogether.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 324, published on April 13 2017)

Armenia approves missile deal with Russia

OCT. 14 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Armenia’s parliament approved a missile defence deal with Russia that will mean it relies increasingly heavily on the Kremlin for its defences, media reported. Russia already maintains a large military base in Armenia, seen as essential for keeping its various enemies (mainly Azerbaijan and Turkey) at arms length. Importantly, officials also said that the missile defence deal with Russia did not cover the region of Nagorno-Karabakh which Armenia disputes with Azerbaijan.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 301, published on Oct. 21 2016)

Azerbaijan signs missile deal with Russia

OCT. 1 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Azerbaijan and Russia agreed to jointly produce tactical air-to-air and surface-to-air missiles, according to the AzeriDefense magazine. Representatives of KTRV, Russia’s Tactical Missiles Corporation, and Sharg, owned by Azerbaijan’s ministry of defence, signed the deal in Baku. Azerbaijan has been spending heavily on its weapon system in the last few years.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 299, published on Oct. 7 2016)

Kalashnikov opens store in Georgian capital

TBILISI, JULY 11 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Russian arms manufacturer Kalashnikov has opened its first shop outside Russia in a Tbilisi shopping mall, selling guns and accessories from both the Kalashnikov range and the Baikal hunting range.

Kalashnikov, which is 51% owned by Rostec, a Russian defence sector state holding, had not sold civilian firearms to Georgia in a decade, the company said.

“In the next five years, we are looking to boost deliveries of civil arms to Georgia,” Kalashnikov’s marketing director, Vladimir Dmitriyev said in a press release.

Relations between Russia and Georgia have slowly improved since former President Mikheil Saakashvili lost power in 2013 and the new government moved towards reconciliation after a war in 2008 exacerbated tensions in the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

The new store said it will sell hunting and sports arms. The company is looking to brush off the old Soviet-era heritage and build a more modern, branded look. Last year, it opened 20 new shops across Russia and plans to enter Kazakhstan in 2017. Kalashnikov is one of Russia’s most recognisable brands.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 289, published on July 15 2016)