Critical Week for Turkish Defense Industry: Strategic Moves by ASELSAN, Baykar, and TUSAŞ

Strategic Partnerships and Diplomatic Engagements Between January 26 and February 1, 2026, Turkey's defense industry agenda was marked by strategic partnerships, export targets, and technological milestones.
Agreements signed by ASELSAN with European and NATO partners, alongside Baykar's export performance, reaffirmed the sector's global competitiveness.
ASELSAN expanded its strategic collaborations by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with UK-based Babcock International for the supply of Electronic Warfare systems.
During the same period, it was announced that NATO would procure Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) systems from ASELSAN for portable air defense systems.
Diplomatic activities included visits from the Saudi Arabian Air Defense Forces, the Nigerian Ministry of Defense, and the Italian Financial Police, who evaluated new cooperation opportunities.
Additionally, Boğaziçi Savunma successfully demonstrated the ILTER J350 system during field tests for a Colombian delegation.
Export Success and Corporate Expansion According to 2025 export data, ARCA Defense secured the top position, while Baykar, TUSAŞ, TEI, ROKETSAN, and ASELSAN maintained their significant presence in the rankings.
Baykar strengthened its global standing by achieving $2.2 billion in exports within the global UCAV market in 2025.
Otokar signed an MoU to acquire 96.77% of the Romanian company Automecanica to increase its footprint in the European market.
In naval projects, the PNS KHAIBAR, built under the main contract of ASFAT, was officially sent off, while STM laid the first block for ships to be produced for Portugal in Istanbul.
Technological Tests and Future Vision In field tests, STM’s armed swarm UAVs and HAVELSAN’s POYRAZ rotary-wing kamikaze drones successfully neutralized their targets.
TUSAŞ General Manager Mehmet Demiroğlu announced that civil certification for the domestic GÖKBEY helicopter is expected within a few months.
Regarding production capacity, the Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation (MKE) plans to increase its annual artillery ammunition production to 1 million units by 2028.
Meanwhile, ASFAT continues its efforts to establish Turkey as a global modernization hub for Airbus A400M military transport aircraft.