According to the source of the publication, the deal is brought on by the recent frequent shootings on the border with Armenia, which may soon escalate into a new full-scale war in Karabakh. What type of weapons does Azerbaijan intend to purchase and why does our country need it?
Israeli political scientist, international law expert Rabbi Mikhail Finkel confirms that serious sources say that negotiations are underway between Baku and Tel Aviv on the purchase of a very large consignment of weapons—the kind that Azerbaijan has never bought from Israel before. The information leaks into reputable Israeli publications both from anonymous sources and from sources involved in the negotiations.
“What is the reason? I think that the reason is the aggravation of the situation on the Azerbaijani border and Armenia’s actions. Let’s take a look back: over the past three weeks, Armenia, in the vilest terrorist-like manner, has been firing on the Azerbaijani military and Azerbaijani territories, using artillery, various types of small arms and mortars in breach of the signed peace agreements. The situation is painfully familiar to Israel, as the same happens on our borders. It is similar to what we face: any agreement with terrorist groups always ends in that agreement being breached by the latter,” the Israeli political scientist says.
Terrorists do not to comply with either international laws or the documents they sign. Therefore, it makes it quite clear, the political scientist points out, to which group of players Armenia belongs.
According to him, the talks between Baku and Tel Aviv are secret and large-scale. Speaking on the issue of arms sales, Mikhail Finkel shared his speculations about the nature of the deal. He does not rule out that these may be the cutting-edge Israeli weapons that are capable of shooting down missiles and drones in the air, as well as destroying mortars and various shells.
“That is, the task at hand may be to put some kind of protective dome on the country’s borders, thereby saving the lives of Azerbaijani military and civilians. As I have already said, what is happening on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border at the moment very much resembles the situation on the Israeli border. Israel has the Iron Dome system, and there are other systems that can destroy more portable missiles and shells. They could be the subject of the current negotiations,” M. Finkel suggests.
There is information that the sky of Baku is already being guarded by the Israeli Iron Dome air defense system. However, the Israeli political scientist says, each system of this kind requires regular upgrades, and there are already other, newer air defense systems operating in Israel. They are fundamentally different from the Iron Dome, which is designed, as you know, to shoot down long-, medium- and short-range missiles, but not to destroy mortar shells, or small explosives-laden drones. Other “dome” systems capable of shooting down and tracking the trajectory of smaller shells have already been developed and are operating in Israel. It is quite possible that this deal is about this kind of cooperation of Israeli weapons in the border regions of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan may also want to equip its army to the greatest possible extent in case of a new war.
Finkel also suggests that the deal may involve such military innovation as laser weapons. As we know, in January 2021, the Israeli Ministry of Defense presented a laser air defense system to be integrated with the Iron Dome air defense system. Many, including the Israeli media, point out that at the first stage it can be used to intercept mortar shells, Qassam and Grad type rockets with a range of up to 40 km, anti-tank missiles (including modern Kornet-type missiles) and small UAVs. Afterwards the system is expected to intercept long-range missiles and even missiles launched from a distance of hundreds of kilometers, that is, from countries like Syria and Lebanon. Most importantly, this system is much cheaper to operate than the already obsolescent Iron Dome.
According to the Israeli expert, Tel Aviv has a new unique system now—an active protection system called “Windbreaker” (international designation “Trophy”). It is mounted on individual tanks, and any projectile fired at the vehicle is destroyed by a mini-dome around the tank. The system has already been acquired by the German Bundeswehr and mounted on every German tank. This APS makes a tank almost invulnerable.
“Israel can also supply Azerbaijan with modernized drones, for example, the size of a mosquito, which can be used to eliminate certain highly dangerous terrorists, and many other types of unique modern equipment. Azerbaijan is a very important and friendly country for Israel. Tel Aviv is willing to do a lot to make sure that the citizens of Azerbaijan sleep peacefully in their homes and the Azerbaijani military do not lose their lives at the hands of Armenian terrorism,” the expert concluded.
Vadim Mansurov
Translated from Minval.az
Aze.Media