by Giulia Segreti

Rome (Reuters) – Leonardo and Baykar, aeronautical companies respectively Italian and Turkish, announced Thursday the creation of a joint venture for the production of drones, a decision testifying to the will of the defense sector to take advantage of the increase in military spending and rearmament in Europe.

“Europe has a deficit in unmanned technologies for various reasons, and in a complicated period like the one we live, it is fundamental to guarantee global security,” said Roberto Cingolani, Managing Director of Leonardo, at a press conference.

He added that the “fundamental agreement” concluded with Baykar would address this issue.

The two groups estimated in a statement the European drone market at $ 100 billion (92.9 billion euros) over the next ten years.

Production sites will be located in Italy and Turkey, and the headquarters of the joint venture in Italy, said Roberto Cingolani.

“The two groups have been working on the commercial level for four or five years and have decided to go further,” he said.

He also stressed that it had taken five months to conclude the agreement, and that the two companies had already started discussions with the armed forces of their respective countries.

(Giulia Segreti report, Etienne Breban, edited by Augustin Turpin)

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