Turkiye says crashed drone believed to be Russian-made

ISTANBUL: Turkiye said a drone that crashed on Friday in a rural area of northwestern Turkiye following a series of incidents linked to the Russia-Ukraine conflict was of Russian origin.

The unmanned aerial vehicle was discovered near the city of Izmit – around 30 kilometres (18 miles) south of the Black Sea, the private DHA news agency reported.

The drone “is believed to be of Russian-made Orlan-10 type used for reconnaissance and surveillance purposes according to initial findings,” said an interior ministry statement posted on X.

There was ongoing investigation into the incident, the ministry added, without elaborating.

Turkish media reported that the device had been damaged in the crash.

The incident came after Turkiye shot down a drone on Monday that had “lost control” as it approached its airspace from the Black Sea.

Ukrainian drone attacks kill 3 in Russia’s Rostov

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has warned against the Black Sea becoming an “area of confrontation” between Russia and Ukraine, following several strikes in recent weeks on ships in the region.

A Turkish vessel was damaged last week in a Russian air strike near the Ukrainian port city of Odesa, just hours after Erdogan spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the margins of a summit in Turkmenistan.