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Türkiye's defense and aerospace industry exports reached $8.5 billion this year, according to Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB) Chairman Haluk Gorgun, speaking at the 7th Defense Industry Meetings organized jointly by the Istanbul Chamber of Industry and SAHA Istanbul on Thursday.
The meetings, focused on "Supply Chain and Sustainability," brought together different sectors of the Turkish defense industry.
The opening was attended by Presidency of Defense Industries Chairman Haluk Gorgun, Deputy Minister of Defense Musa Heybet, Istanbul Governor Davut Gul, SAHA Istanbul Vice President and Roketsan General Manager Murat Ikinci, Istanbul Chamber of Industry Board Chairman Erdal Bahcivan, and sector representatives.
Deputy Minister of Defense Musa Heybet emphasized that current tensions and conflicts demonstrate the vital importance of having a strong defense industry and independent operational capability.
"Türkiye has now taken a distinguished position in the defense industry by developing unique and indigenous systems on air, land, and maritime platforms. Unmanned aerial vehicles, Bayraktar TB2, Akinci, and Anka systems have not only increased our Armed Forces' operational capabilities but have also become game-changing platforms on a global scale," Heybet stated.
Heybet highlighted indigenous defense system achievements: "Our KAAN, Hurjet, and Kizilelma are the new jewels of our defense industry and the most concrete examples of the effectiveness we have achieved."
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A layered, indigenous air defense architecture has been developed through systems such as Korkut, Hisar-A, Hisar-O and Siper.
Regarding maritime platforms, Heybet stated, "Corvettes and frigates developed under the MILGEM project have advanced Türkiye's national shipbuilding capability to an advanced level.
These projects are implemented as products of a deeply developed supply ecosystem in the defense industry, including radar, weapons systems, combat management systems, and platform sub-components. Today, MILGEM has also become a brand with high export potential."
Heybet drew attention to indigenous development of smart ammunition, laser-guided missiles, and precision-strike systems in the ammunition and missile systems field, noting that foreign dependency has significantly decreased.
"Türkiye, through investments in the defense industry utilizing advanced technologies, has not only met its own security needs but also reached a position as a stakeholder in the international market, leaving its mark on a sector that will be a locomotive for our economic development," he said.
Heybet outlined future priorities by stating, "We are creating policies to develop our country's scientific and technological infrastructure, continuously modernize our products, anticipate future systems and begin work accordingly, and similarly increase our qualified workforce."
Istanbul Chamber of Industry Board Chairman Erdal Bahcivan reported significant growth in defense industry exports, saying, "Defense and aerospace industry exports reached approximately $7.5 billion in the January-November 2025 period, representing a 30% increase compared to the same period last year."
Bahcivan noted that only six defense industry companies were listed in the ISO 500 in 2000, but this number increased to 20 in 2024. He stated that 2024 defense and aerospace industry exports reached $7.154 billion, with platforms, systems, subsystems, and materials exported to 180 countries.
The defense industry sector, which was approximately 80% dependent on foreign sources in 2002, has today reached an 82% localization rate with over 3,500 firms, over 1,400 projects, and approximately 100,000 qualified human resources.
Presidency of Defense Industries Chairman Gorgun outlined financial support measures for the sector, noting: "We have activated supplier financing support mechanisms allowing suppliers to access credit using their deferred receivables from our foundation companies as collateral, strengthening our defense industry supply chain at all levels."
"We have activated a new Credit Guarantee Program with a total guarantee size of ₺40 billion ($936 million). To date, 1,200 companies have benefited from this program," Gorgun announced.
Defense Industries Chairman also highlighted developments in Türkiye's artificial intelligence (AI) program, stating, "We have launched six new projects ranging from artificial intelligence-based command-and-control systems to swarm intelligence, from threat analytics to decision support infrastructure."
"Türkiye is strengthening its position as not only a user but also a rule-setter and developer in artificial intelligence," he noted.
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