The Russian Defence Ministry said on Thursday that Its forces had downed a Turkish-made TB2 Bayraktar drone in Kyiv, the first such claim since the start of the war in Ukraine last month.
“One of the downed Bayraktar drones of Ukrainian Armed Forces in Kiev region,” the ministry said in a tweet containing photos of what appeared to be a destroyed TB2 drone.
While the caption suggested that there have been other such incidents, no such claim has been made by Russia before.
Ukraine has purchased at least 20 Bayraktar TB2 drones from Turkey in recent years, and has been using the armed UAVs effectively against Russian forces in the invasion that started on Feb. 24.
The country first used Bayraktar TB2 drones against pro-Russian separatist forces in eastern Ukraine in October, drawing the ire of the Kremlin. Since the start of the recent conflict, Ukrainian officials have repeatedly shared videos depicting airstrikes by the TB-2s on Russian military positions.
Turkey, which maintains good ties with both Russia and NATO, is working to leverage its ties with Kyiv and Moscow to take on the role of mediator.
Last week Turkey hosted the foreign ministers of Ukraine and Russia in talks that failed to yield results.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu was in Moscow on Wednesday as part of renewed diplomatic efforts. He called for a halt to the war in Ukraine and reiterated Ankara’s determination to secure a lasting ceasefire, Reuters reported.
Source: Ahval
