“Turkey has achieved a revolution, so to speak, in the defense industry, just like in many other areas, over the past 19 years. Thanks be to Allah, we have reached an important point on the path we have embarked on to decrease the foreign dependency of the Turkish defense industry,” said Erdoğan.

“The more we develop our national defense industry, the more we will contribute to the regional and global peace”

Stating that 1,236 companies and representatives were taking part in the fair, Erdoğan underscored that Turkey was a country that felt pleased to share with its friends all kinds of means and capabilities it had developed in the defense industry, and noted: “We never have and never will consider our relations in terms of defense industry as ordinary trade relations. We think that the establishment of a climate of peace, stability, and confidence both in our region and the world depends on the creation of a fair balance in the defense industry. We believe that the more we as a leading member of NATO, the world’s greatest defense alliance, develop our national defense industry, the more we will contribute to the regional and global peace.”

“The number of the ongoing defense industry projects has left behind 750”

Erdoğan went on to say: “Turkey has achieved a revolution, so to speak, in the defense industry, just like in many other areas, over the past 19 years. Thanks be to Allah, we have reached an important point on the path we have embarked on to decrease the foreign dependency of the Turkish defense industry. For instance, while there were only 62 ongoing defense industry projects in our country in 2002, today this figure has already been left behind 750. And the budgets of these projects have increased from some 5.5 billion dollars to over 75 billion dollars. Also, the number of our companies that operate in the sector has reached 1,500, which was once 56. And the annual turnover of these companies has approximated 11 billion dollars, which once stood at 1 billion dollars.”