President Erdoğan: Turkey has become a country that can meet the needs of friendly and allied countries together with its own needs
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan delivered a speech at a ceremony held in ASELSAN Gölbaşı Campus for the launch of new ASELSAN systems and opening of facilities.
Drawing attention to the works they have carried out over the past 18 years to render Turkey a completely independent country in defense industry, President Erdoğan said: “While 62 defense industry projects were being carried out in 2002, we, today, have a defense industry where nearly 700 projects have been realized. We have launched some 350 projects over the past five years alone to more actively fight against the attacks our country is faced with. We have increased the budget of our defense industry projects from $5 billion to $60 billion. Also during this period, the number of our companies that operate in this sector have reached 1,500 from 56. The turnover of the sector, which was $1 billion, has increased to $11 billion.”
“TURKEY HAS BECOME A COUNTRY WHICH IS CAPABLE OF OVERCOMING ALL THE PROBLEMS CAUSED BY GLOBAL SUPPLIERS”
Stating that Turkey’s defense and aviation exports have increased from $248 million to some $3 billion, President Erdoğan said: “We are represented by seven firms in the world’s top 100 defense companies list. Five more companies of ours have entered this list over the past five years alone.”
Pointing out that Turkey has become a country that can meet the needs of friendly and allied countries together with its own needs, President Erdoğan went on to say: “We are among the 10 countries that can design, build and maintain their own warships. As regards the production of UAVs, UCAVs and TUAVs on the other hand, we are among the top 3-4 countries in the world. Turkey, today, has become a country which is capable of overcoming all the problems caused and overt or covert embargoes imposed by global suppliers.”
Further stressing that Turkey can easily conduct our anti-terror operations inside its borders and carry out peace operations outside its borders at will, President Erdoğan noted: “We owe all this to the progress we have made in defense industry.”
