Turkiye’s President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has announced that his country has become the world’s largest manufacturer in drones and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in recent years, amid Ankara’s efforts to further boost its defence capabilities and industry.
Speaking at a mass opening ceremony in Turkiye’s southern province of Antalya on Sunday, President Erdogan stated that the Turkish defence industry’s new drones would set “an example to the world”, announcing that “we are producing larger armed UAVs, and they will be completed in a few months”.
Erdogan also notably stated that Turkiye is now the largest manufacturer in the global UAV market, with Turkish companies reportedly reaching 65 per cent of armed drone sales worldwide since 2018.
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The President’s comments come amid Turkiye’s sharp and significant rise in the drone sector – along with its increasingly prominent defence industry – which has seen both armed and surveillance UAVs produced, tested and deployed to various conflict fronts over the past five years, including Syria, Libya and Azerbaijan.
They have also been used in Turkiye’s domestic and regional challenges in terms of Ankara’s fight against the separatist and terror group, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in northern Iraq over the past few years, with such operations recently having been stepped up after the group’s attack on a Turkish defence firm earlier this month.
Turkiye’s aims to boost its defence industry and capabilities also come at a time when the region is facing even more significant challenges due to Israel’s escalating violence, particularly as it threatens Iran and its proxy groups. In this climate, Erdogan reiterated on Sunday, Turkiye must increase its own defences, stating that “If they [Israel’s armed forces] have the Iron Dome, we will have a Steel Dome.”
Turkish president vows to carry out ‘Steel Dome’ defense system project