Israel will not sell the most advanced UAVs to Russia
Following the August 2008 Russia-Georgia war, Russia decided it needed more and better UAVs; two Russian companies failed to deliver them, so Russia bought 12 of them from Israel; Israel says it did not sell Russia the most advanced UAVs
We wrote that other day about Russia’s purchase of twelve Israeli UAVs. The Russians were impressed with the performance of the Israeli UAVs in the hands of the Georgian military during the August 2008 war between the two countries, and Russian military leaders became aware of their need for more battle-field intelligence. Since Russian companies failed to deliver UAVs of the quality the Russian military required, Moscow decided to purchase them from Israel.
Israel, however, does not plan to sell Russia its most advanced UAVs, Israeli defense officials said Monday, after a top Russian official said that the twelve Moscow recently purchased from Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) would be used for study, to build similar models domestically. The Jerusalem Post reports that in a $53 million deal signed recently, Russia will receive two models of IAI’s low-tier UAVs — the I-view MK150 tactical UAV and the Searcher Mk II medium-range UAV.
In an interview with the RIA Novosti news agency on Monday, Vyacheslav Dzirkaln, deputy head of the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation, revealed that the main goal of the deal with Israel was to study the technology in order to build the drones domestically. “We must take their know-how and put it to practical use [in developing our own craft],” Dzirkaln was quoted as saying.
Russia’s interest in Israeli drones surfaced in late 2008 following the war in Georgia, during which Tbilisi operated Israeli-made drones. Israeli officials said that this was not part of the deal signed with Russia, but that the possibility had been “taken into consideration,” and as a result the advanced UAV models and accompanying technology would not be sold to Moscow. “We have a responsibility to safeguard our ingenious technology,” one official said. “We were aware of this possibility, even though it was not said explicitly until now.”
According to Russian media reports, the military is planning on manufacturing 100 drones and close to a dozen guidance systems that could be used for reconnaissance in the event of a conflict. Until now, the reports said, Russian defense companies — Irkut and Vega Radio — have failed to develop an advanced system.
