See the TB2 drone heading to Ukraine after a Lithuanian crowdfunding drive
By The Associated Press
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A Turkish Bayraktar TB2 combat drone is on view during a presentation at the Lithuanian Air Force base in Siauliai, Lithuania, on July 6, 2022. (Petra Malukas/AFP via Getty Images)
People take selfies with a Turkish Bayraktar TB2 combat drone during its presentation at the Lithuanian Air Force base in Siauliai, Lithuania, on July 6, 2022. (Petra Malukas/AFP via Getty Images)
The Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 is a medium-altitude, long-endurance unmanned combat aerial vehicle, capable of being remotely controlled or performing autonomous flight operations. This one is seen at the Siauliai military air force base about 144 miles east of Vilnius, Lithuania, on July 1, 2022. (Lithuanian Defence Ministry via AP)
The Turkish company Baykar, which produces unmanned military aircraft, decided to donate the TB2 combat drone to Lithuania. (Lithuanian Defence Ministry via AP)
From left, Ukrainian Ambassador to Lithuania Petro Beshta, Baykar CEO Haluk Bayraktar and Lithuanian Defence Minister Arvydas Anusauskas attend the presentation of the Bayraktar TB2 combat drone at an Air Force base in Siauliai, Lithuania, on July 6, 2022. (Petra Malukas/AFP via Getty Images)
Lithuania on July 6, 2022, exhibited a crowdfunded Turkish-made military drone that it plans to send to Ukraine to help the country fight Russia's invasion. (Petras Malukas/AFP via Getty Images)
A detail of a Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 combat drone, named Hawk (Vanagas), is seen during its presentation at the Lithuanian Air Force base in Siauliai, Lithuania, on July 6, 2022. (Petras Malukas/AFP via Getty Images)
People in the NATO member country of Lithuania raised nearly $6.1 million for a Bayraktar TB2 drone over three days, before Turkish manufacturer Baykar announced it would donate the drone free of charge. (Petra Malukas/AFP via Getty Images)
A Turkish Bayraktar TB2 combat drone is on view during a presentation at the Lithuanian Air Force base in Siauliai, Lithuania, on July 6, 2022. (Petras Malukas/AFP via Getty Images)
The TB2 is a medium-altitude, long-endurance unmanned combat aerial vehicle. (Lithuanian Defence Ministry via AP)
VILNIUS, Lithuania — Lithuania will present a combat drone to Ukraine that was donated by the Turkish manufacturer after a private crowdfunding campaign among ordinary Lithuanians, who raised nearly €6 million (U.S. $6.1 million) for the purpose within days.
The campaign’s success inspired Turkey’s Baykar defense company, which makes the Bayraktar TB2 drone, to provide it free of cost. Some of the money raised in Lithuania was used to arm the drone, and the rest will be funneled to Ukraine to address “critical needs,” the Lithuanian government said.
Lithuanian Defence Minister Arvydas Anušauskas presented the drone, which arrived in the country earlier this week, to the public at a local air base.
“One weapon won’t win a war but symbols are extremely important in any war,” he told public broadcaster LRT on Wednesday.
The UAV will be handed over to Ukraine in the coming days.
The crowdfunding initiative was launched at the end of May with a target amount of €5 million, which it reached in a few days as thousands of citizens chipped in.
Lithuania, a Baltic nation of 2.8 million people and a former Soviet republic, is among the most active supporters of Ukraine and has provided military aid to Kyiv on a regular basis since Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine.
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