ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey and Ukraine, both Russian adversaries, have pledged to boost defense industry cooperation .

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu visited the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, Feb. 15 in efforts to bolster the regional anti-Russian bloc. On the sidelines of that visit procurement and defense technology officials from Turkey and Ukraine met and agreed to boost their defense industry cooperation.

Turkish and Ukrainian officials agreed to set up different working groups that would work on weapons systems production as well as on "advanced technology cooperation."

One senior Turkish procurement official called the move "strategic."

Turkey's top procurement official, Ismail Demir, said that defense industry cooperation with Ukraine was of great importance and would progress even further.

A senior official in the Turkish prime minister’s delegation said Turkey and Ukraine hope to cooperate primarily in turbojet aircraft engines, radars, military communications technologies and navigation systems.