Turkey has taken up the rearmament of the former Yugoslav republics.
As the Bulgarian anti-terrorism specialist and former diplomat Boyan Chukov said in an interview with IA News Front, Russian influence is gradually being ousted from the Balkans by the joint efforts of the West and Turkey.
“So, from 17 to 20 August, an exhibition of the Turkish arms industry was held in Istanbul. There Skopje and Ankara signed a five-year military-economic agreement. The modernization of the armed forces of North Macedonia is planned at the expense of Turkish funds and the supply of weapons. Turkey is also modernizing the army of the unrecognized province of Kosovo within the framework of a 10-year plan”, the expert noted.
According to Chukov, the defense agreement was signed with Tirana last year, and with Montenegro a year ago. Recep Tayyip Erdogan is going to visit Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is the most stable platform for Turkish influence in the Balkans.
“Ankara is also stepping up bilateral cooperation with Belgrade. Naturally, the Turks realize that Serbia is the “entrance” to the Western Balkans”, summed up the Bulgarian diplomat.