Venezuela claims to build drones with help from Iran, China
Hugo Chavez Kent Gilbert/AP
The move comes two months after Iran claimed to recover data from a downed U.S. drone.
Venezuela is building unmanned drone aircraft in cooperation with Iran and other allies, President Hugo Chavez said in a lengthy televised speech to military officers at Venezuela's Defense Ministry, Reuters reports.
The announcement will likely increase concerns over the Chavez government's role in the region.
Chavez said construction was being done with the help of China, Russia, Iran, and other countries. He added that the aircraft would be used exclusively for defensive purposes and possibly oil and mining explorations. “We don't have any plans to harm anyone,” he said.
Chavez spoke by satellite link with a military officer at the state-owned arms maker Cavim. The officer stood next to a small drone labeled Harpy-001, purportedly 13 feet by 8 feet, able to fly as high as 10,000 feet and one of three that Venezuela has produced, the report said.
Iran said in April that it recovered data from a Lockheed Martin-built RQ-170 Sentinel that crashed in its eastern region in December and was building a copy of the spy drone.