Interest in Turkish defense industry growing, official says

Sevil Erkus – ANTALYA

On March 12, the head of the Defense Industries Presidency (SSB), İsmail Demir, said that the demand for Turkish defense industries was increasing in the face of growing tensions in the region.

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He pointed to the fact that the recent escalation between Ukraine and Russia has raised security concerns in the countries of the region, which has also increased the demand for defense industries. The Baltic and Balkan countries are in a “period of awareness and preparation” on strengthening their defense capabilities, he told a group of journalists on the sidelines of the Antalya Diplomatic Forum.

Turkey will become a popular country not only for its armed drones but also for a wide range of defense equipment, Demir added.

The official pointed out that Turkey currently has no talks either with Russia and Ukraine on the issue of defense industries as the two sides are in a state of war.

The process on the S-400 missile defense system with Russia also does not envisage a new step in the short term, he added.

“We will reflect on their fate [of the defense projects] when things calm down,” he said.

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Elaborating on the use of Turkish Bayraktar TB2 armed drones by the Ukrainian armed forces in its war with Russia, Demir said: “Our view is that the products we deliver become the property of this country. This country is free to use them.

“The source of the product may be Turkey, but it is now owned by that country. And the country can use its property as it wishes,” he said, adding that Turkey has also been threatened with various weapons in some of its clashes but that Ankara has never implicated the country of manufacturing.

He recalled that a schedule is in place for the training and delivery of Turkish defense equipment to Ukraine. “According to information from the SSB, there is no demand for training or delivery of equipment these days,” Demir said.

The official stressed that Turkey would not “add fuel to the fire” in the war between Russia and Ukraine.

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