Turkey’s decision to move many of its attack drones to the Geçitkale airbase in northern Cyprus means its aggression and territorial violations in the region will soon become much worse, Michael Rubin, a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, stated, Ahval reports.
Rubin said the move to station the drones on Cyprus was as threatening to the Western alliance as Turkey’s purchase of air defense missiles from Russia in 2019.
The Turkish authorities have been transforming a disused military airport in the breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) into an airbase for the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The base will be officially re-opened on July 20, on the 47th anniversary of Turkey’s invasion of northern Cyprus, which it terms as the Cyprus Peace Operation, CNN Türk television reported.
Turkey has threatened regional security by violating the waters of not only Cyprus, but also Greece and the exclusive economic zones of Israel, Egypt, Lebanon and Gaza, Rubin said. These areas are all now within the upgraded range of Turkey’s Bayraktar-TB2 drones, he said.
The United States should now cease exporting any parts or technology that helps Turkey build the drones, he said.
