03 October 2018•Update: 05 October 2018
By Ata Ufuk Seker
BRUSSELS
Turkey along with 12 other NATO allies on Wednesday signed a declaration of intent to cooperate on the introduction of Maritime Unmanned Systems.
Turkish National Defense Minister Hulusi Akar was in Brussels to attend the NATO defense ministerial meeting where the signing took place. Ministers from Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, the U.K. and the U.S. also participated.
"The use of unmanned systems is a potentially game changing leap forward in maritime technology. They will enable us to be significantly more effective in crucial areas such as detecting and clearing mines, and finding and tracking submarines. Working alongside traditional naval assets, these unmanned systems will increase both our situational awareness and our control of the seas," said a statement on the NATO website.
"NATO Allies have learned from the experience of introducing unmanned vehicles in the air domain. This has better equipped us to meet similar challenges that may arise in the maritime domain," it added.
