Dhaka, Jan 27 (PTI): Bangladesh on Tuesday inked a defence deal with China to set up a manufacturing facility for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), the interim government said.
The agreement was signed between the Bangladesh Air Force (BAF) and the state-owned China Electronics Technology Group Corporation International (CETC), the defence ministry said in a statement.
“Under the agreement, BAF and CETC will jointly set up a facility to produce and assemble state-of-the-art UAVs,” it said.
As part of the deal, CETC will transfer technology to the BAF and support capacity-building to independently produce UAVs in the long term.
The UAVs will be used for humanitarian assistance and disaster management as well as military operations.
According to the statement, the BAF will initially acquire the capability to manufacture and assemble various types of Medium Altitude Low Endurance (MALE) UAVs and Vertical Take-off and Landing (VTOL) UAVs.
The agreement to set up the facility in Bangladesh was signed at the BAF headquarters in Dhaka Cantonment in the presence of Air Chief Marshal Hasan Mahmood Khan.
Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Yao Wen, Principal Staff Officer of Bangladesh’s Armed Forces Division Lt Gen SM Kamrul Hassan, and representatives from the Chief Adviser’s office were also present at the signing ceremony.
CETC manufactures radars, UAVs and telecommunication equipment, and develops IT infrastructure, including networks and software, for civilian and military applications. It also operates as an investment and asset management firm.
China has been Bangladesh’s primary supplier of defence hardware for decades.
According to several reports, the BAF is finalising a USD 2.2 billion deal to procure 20 Chengdu J-10C “Vigorous Dragon” multi-role fighter jets to enhance its capabilities, replacing ageing F-7 and MiG-29 aircraft. PTI AR SCY SCY SCY
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