Domestic defense firms join together

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

‘Defense firms will cooperate going forward,’ says gunmaker chairman Aliş. AA photo

The Turkish defense industry, with 70 firms which include Aselsan, Roketsan and FNSS, has united under the Defense Industry Exporters Union, reported the daily Hürriyet.

“Our target is to lift our 1 billion dollar of exports to 2 billion dollars,” said Sarsılmaz Chairman Latif Aral Aliş, the first president of the umbrella organization. Aliş said the industry has the potential and infrastructure to achieve this goal. “The defense firms will cooperate after now, the firms will work with bureaucracy in sync and these will double the exports.”

The Turkish defense industry has developed rapidly in the last decade. Domestic coverage ratio of military needs climbed to 52.1 percent in 2010 from 25 percent in 2003, according to the official web site of Defense Industry Undersecretary.

The defense firms were members of the Machinery and Accessories Exporters’ Union before, which gathers together 9,000 machinery exporters.

“The support we will receive from the governmental institutions will be used properly and to benefit all our members. We have to work harder to gain better results. We believe that industry projects will be completed in less time and with less cost by cooperating under this organization,” said Aliş.