Gorgun: Turkish Defense Industry Rises to 11th in Global Exports

Ahead of the NATO Heads of State and Government Summit to be held in Ankara on 7-8 July, Turkey’s Defense Industries President Prof. Dr. Haluk Gorgun shared concrete figures on the progress the country’s defense sector has made in exports in recent years.

Gorgun said Turkey had risen to 11th place worldwide in defense and aerospace exports. Noting that exports stood at around 4.4 billion dollars in 2022 and exceeded 10 billion dollars last year, he added that 17.8 billion dollars in new contracts were signed over the same period. Turkish defense products now reach 185 countries, he said.

Providing an update on Turkey’s national combat aircraft KAAN, Gorgun said the program includes six prototypes, with ground and flight tests continuing. He noted that new contracts had been signed with ASELSAN and ROKETSAN for the HISAR A and HISAR O systems under the Steel Dome air and missile defense project.

Referring to production investments in the earthquake-affected region, Gorgun said facilities established in Malatya, Kahramanmaras and Hatay were partly operational, with the remainder nearing completion.

Emphasizing that a Defense Industry Forum would accompany the NATO Summit as a main event for the first time, Gorgun said the forum would address topics ranging from innovation to supply chains through panels bringing together industry representatives and decision-makers. A reception hosted at Turkish Aerospace Industries’ (TUSAS) Kahramankazan facilities is set to display indigenous platforms and feature demonstration flights by national aircraft.

In earlier remarks on Turkey’s position within the alliance, Gorgun had said a stronger Turkish defense industry means a stronger alliance, and that the country had built an industrial base capable of contributing to allies in areas such as unmanned systems, air defense, command and control, and secure communications.

Sources: A Haber, Presidency of Defense Industries