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Türkiye aims to carry out joint shipbuilding with Egypt, similar to its MILGEM corvette cooperation with Pakistan, Turkish Naval Forces Commander Adm. Ercument Tatlioglu stated during the distinguished observer day of the Friendship Sea-2026 exercise off Alexandria.
"By taking our defense industry cooperation in the naval field to a more advanced stage, we aim to carry out joint shipbuilding activities with Egypt, similar to the cooperation we carried out with Pakistan under the MILGEM project," Tatlioglu said.
"We believe this approach will take relations between the two countries’ navies to a more comprehensive and lasting partnership," he added.
The exercise, known in Arabic as Bahr El Sadaka, has been held off Alexandria since Nov. 4 to develop bilateral ties and improve interoperability between the Turkish and Egyptian navies.
The Turkish navy chief said unmanned aerial and surface vehicles have become indispensable to modern naval warfare and that Türkiye has pioneering capabilities thanks to its defense industry.
"We attach great importance to sharing these capabilities with friendly and allied countries and developing joint training, operations and defense industry cooperation. In this context, we are taking concrete steps to develop our cooperation with the Egyptian Navy in unmanned aerial vehicles and unmanned surface vehicles," he said.
The domestically developed Bayraktar TB3 drone and the Pirana kamikaze unmanned surface vessel (K-USV) made by Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation (MKE) took part in the exercise.
"These systems are important indicators of the technological level our Naval Forces Command has reached and its ability to adapt to the modern operating environment," Tatlioglu noted.
"As the Turkish Naval Forces, we produce and use not only our national platforms but also the national guided missiles, torpedoes and naval mines used on these platforms. We are also working with the Egyptian Navy on the joint use of these weapon systems," he said.
"Due to its geostrategic location, energy resources, critical sea lines of communication and regional developments, the Eastern Mediterranean is gaining increasing importance in the international security environment," the Turkish navy chief noted, adding that, "The two key actors in ensuring security and stability in this strategic geography are the Turkish Naval Forces and the Egyptian Naval Forces."
"The Friendship Sea Exercise we conducted with this understanding is a concrete indicator of the developing cooperation between Türkiye and Egypt in the Eastern Mediterranean," he said, describing the two as the most important countries in the Eastern Mediterranean, with a deep shared history.
Tatlioglu said the Turkish Navy ranks among the world’s most experienced in mine warfare.
"Especially since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, we have been actively on duty against the drifting mine threat that emerged in the Black Sea and are resolutely continuing our activities to ensure the safety of maritime transport," he said.
He said Türkiye is sharing its mine warfare knowledge and field experience with the Egyptian Navy, which would contribute to maritime transport security in the Eastern Mediterranean and regional stability.
"As the two most important naval powers of the Eastern Mediterranean, we wish to increase our joint work to strengthen security and stability at sea," he said, thanking Egyptian Navy Commander Vice Adm. Mahmoud Adel Fawzy and Egyptian personnel for their hospitality.
Türkiye participated with the amphibious assault ship TCG Anadolu, the frigate TCG Gaziantep, the fast attack craft TCG Meltem, two SH-70 helicopters, three AH-1W attack helicopters and three Bayraktar TB3 drones.
Egypt deployed the multipurpose amphibious ship Gamal Abdel Nasser and the ships M. Fahmy, El Fateh, Fouad Zekry, El Farouk and Al-Arish.
Scenarios involved aircraft, underwater attack (SAT) teams, amphibious assault teams and first-class diver teams. Tatlioglu and Fawzy watched the drills and toured an area displaying Turkish domestic weapons and vehicles aboard the ship.
Tatlioglu also met Türkiye's ambassador in Cairo, Salih Mutlu Sen, on Nov. 6 and visited Fawzy at Alexandria Naval Base on Nov. 7 for inter-delegation talks, the Defense Ministry said.
He also laid a wreath at the Alexandria Turkish Martyrs' Cemetery.
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