Moscow. Russia’s friendship with China has started growing. Russia, which was somewhat dependent on Iran for weapons, is now looking towards the Dragon. It has developed a drone that has the power to strike with precision over long distances. This is being said because last year Russia started the production of a new long-range attack drone called Garpiya-A1 using Chinese engines and parts, which it has used in Ukraine. This information has come to light from two sources in the European intelligence agency and documents seen by Reuters.
The intelligence – which included production contracts for the new drones, company letters on the manufacturing process and financial documents – indicated that IEMZ Kupol, a subsidiary of Russian-owned arms maker Almaz-Antey, built more than 2,500 Garpiya-A1 drones from July 2023 to July 2024. There was little information previously about the new Russian drone incorporating Chinese technology. However, IEMZ Kupol and Almaz-Antey did not respond when asked about the Garpiya-A1.
Both intelligence sources said the Garpiya, which means Harpy in Russian, has been deployed on military and civilian targets in Ukraine, causing damage to critical infrastructure as well as both civilian and military casualties. They shared photos of Garpiya wreckage off Ukraine with Reuters, but provided no further details. Reuters found information that corroborates this conclusion, but could not independently confirm the images.
The sources asked that neither they nor their agency be identified because of the sensitivity of the information. They also asked that some details related to the documents, such as dates, be withheld. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in May last year that Iran had supplied Russia with more than a thousand Shahid “kamikaze” drones since the start of the invasion in February 2022.
These have been used to weaken Ukraine’s air defense and target infrastructure away from forward posts. However, Iran has repeatedly denied sending drones to Russia for use in Ukraine. Now, using China’s engine in this drone, Russia has developed a new and deadly drone called Garpiya-A1.
Tags: Russia, Russia ukraine war, Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping
FIRST PUBLISHED : September 13, 2024, 20:21 IST