Morocco Expands Drone Fleet, Modernizing Military with Turkish and American Models

After the Israeli drones, Morocco has acquired 13 Turkish Bayraktar TB2 drones, received six more in December and will have to receive a second batch of six drones in 2022 "as part of the modernization of the FAR arsenal in order to prepare to face any danger and recent hostilities". The FAR also plan to acquire other more sophisticated drone models such as the American "Sea Guardian" model. According to Emmanuel Dupuy, Morocco’s acquisition of Turkish drones is justified by the effectiveness of these devices that have proven themselves in the Nagorno-Karabakh war between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

In a statement to TV5, the expert estimated that Morocco is not buying the drones for ideological and geostrategic reasons, but for military tactical reasons. According to him, these drones allow Morocco to benefit from a cutting-edge tool, which could make the difference in the event of a possible armed conflict. By strengthening its drone capabilities, Morocco is adapting to a regional context marked by the "dronization" in Africa, he notes, adding that there were no drones in 2016, but in 2021, almost all countries have them in the region.

"This dronization is not linked to a conflict, but to a mindset, a philosophy, which consists in carrying out counter-insurgency or armed group fighting operations, while exposing men as little as possible," explains Emmanuel Dupuy. These drones can be of another use for Morocco whose army participates in UN peacekeeping missions. With these drones, it will be able on the one hand to reduce the number of Moroccan troops deployed on the ground and strengthen its cooperation with France in order to contain the jihadist threat in the Sahel, on the other hand, analyzes the expert.