China delivered HQ-9 air defense systems and Ylong-1 UAV to Turkmenistan

Defence & Security News - China and Uzbekistan
 
 
China delivered HQ-9 air defense systems and Ylong-1 UAV to Uzbekistan
China has supplied its new generation medium- to long-range FD-2000 air defense systems, an export version of the HQ-9, to Uzbekistan, according to the country’s news website 12news. Tashkent has also received at least one Pterodactyl UAV (Yilong-1), which was developed by China's Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group.
     
China delivered HQ 9 air defense systems and Ylong 1 UAV to Uzbekistan 640 001 China's HQ-9/FD-2000 medium-to-long-range air defense system showcased during Zhuai Air Show 2014
     
Similar deliveries have been made to Turkmenistan, the website quotes Chinese newspaper "Huantsyu Shibao" as saying.

The contracts for the provision of defense equipment to these Central Asian countries were signed back in 2013.

The purpose of delivering weaponry to the countries is to reduce the price China has to pay them for natural gas, according to WantChinaTimes, a news website operated by The China Times group.

"Since natural gas produced in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan is vital to China's development, the country is willing to sell advanced weapon systems such as the FD-2000, an export version of the HQ-9 missile, to its western neighbors as a way to get better deals,” the website writes.

Yet there is a catch. If China successfully convinces both nations to purchase FD-2000s, they will then have to purchase Chinese radars, early warning aircrafts and even fighter jets to coordinate with the air defense system."

The FD-2000 (export version of HQ-9) is an advanced long-range air defense missile weapon system designed and manufactured by the Chinese Defense Company CPMIEC (China Precision Machinery Import & Export Corporation). It can perform air-defense engagement mission in massive air raid under intense electronic jamming. It can intercept not only aircraft, armed helicopter and UAV, but also cruise missile, air-to-ground missile and stand-off precision guided bomb. The FD-2000 is used as air-defense system to protect political, military and economic facilities. With two-level of command and control capability, it can command other air defense weapons to form a layered aor defense system. The FD-2000 was unveiled for the first time to the public at the 8th Zhuhai Airshow in 2012. The export version of HQ-9 provides extra anti-stealth capability by incorporating YLC-20 passive sensor as an option.

Uzbekistan's air defense systems currently consist in one SAM brigade equipped with SA-2/-3/-5 surface-to-air missile defense systems.