Israeli defence officials on February 26 confirmed a deal to sell Azerbaijan UAS, anti-aircraft, and missile defence systems for some $1.6 billion.
Azerbaijan’s contract is with the state-run Israel Aerospace Industries. Israeli defence officials, speaking under condition of anonymity, said the deal had been in the works for some time and was not a response to Iran’s nuclear development programme or recent attempts, allegedly by Iranian agents, to kill Israeli diplomats in India, Thailand, Georgia and Azerbaijan.
Israeli media reported late last year that there was a deal for Israel to sell 60 unmanned aircraft of two types to Azerbaijan and that in September 2011 there were discussions about joint Israeli-Azerbaijani construction of UAS with missiles.
Also in September 2011, an Israeli-built unmanned aircraft with Azerbaijani Air Force markings was reportedly shot down over the disputed Nagorno-Karabkah enclave claimed by both Azerbaijan and Armenia.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry earlier this month accused Baku of allowing Israel’s spy agency Mossad to operate in Azerbaijan, which shares, including the Naxchivan enclave, a border with Iran more than 600 kilometers long.
Source: Radio Free Europe