Saudi Arabia buys Turkish drones during Erdogan's visit

Fill in someRIYADH, July 18 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia agreed on Tuesday to buy Turkish drones in the biggest defence contract in Turkey's history as President Tayyip Erdogan reaped the benefits of his diplomatic push to repair ties with Gulf powers and help Ankara's struggling economy.text

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Erdogan arrived in the Saudi Red Sea city of Jeddah on Monday for the first stop of a Gulf tour. Saudi Arabia will acquire the drones "with the aim of enhancing the readiness of the kingdom's armed forces and bolstering its defense and manufacturing capabilities," Defence Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman said in a tweet on Tuesday.

We signed a contract with the Saudi Arabian defence ministry for the Bayraktar Akinci (unmanned combat aerial vehicle) export and cooperation," he said in a Twitter post

Investments and funding from the Gulf have helped relieve pressure on Turkey's economy and its currency reserves since 2021, when Ankara launched a diplomatic effort to repair ties with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.