Türkiye is no longer a country followed only for its defense products, but has become a defense industry ecosystem that international partners want to work with and co-produce in, Türkiye's defense industry chief said.
Speaking to Anadolu about the Belgian Economic Mission’s visit to Türkiye, Secretary of Turkish Defense Industries Haluk Gorgun said the latest engagement reflected years of trust-building, institutional dialogue and Türkiye’s field-proven defense capabilities.
“What we see today is not the result of a few days of activity. It is the outcome of ongoing contacts, mutual trust and capabilities that have proven themselves in the field,” Gorgun said.
“Türkiye is no longer a country that is only followed for its products. Türkiye has become a defense industry ecosystem that others want to work with and co-produce with,” he added.
‘Lasting cooperation needs trust, capability, mutual benefit’
Gorgun said Belgium arrived in Türkiye with a strong delegation including representatives from defense, aviation, technology and industry, showing growing international interest in Türkiye’s defense sector.
He said durable cooperation in defense cannot be built only on goodwill, stressing that trust, capability and meaningful mutual benefit are essential.
Referring to Belgian Defense Minister Theo Francken’s remarks that Türkiye was “way ahead” of Belgium in defense modernization and unmanned warfare capabilities, Gorgun said such comments showed how Türkiye’s progress is now viewed internationally.
Joint development, co-production possible
Gorgun said Türkiye does not want its defense industry relationship with Belgium to remain limited to buying and selling.
“There will of course be trade, products and projects. But we need to go beyond that,” he said.
He pointed to possible areas such as joint development, co-production, cooperation in third markets and joint solutions for NATO’s needs.
Belgium has strengths in sensitive components, advanced materials, space technologies and specialized defense electronics, while Türkiye brings field-proven systems, rapid production capacity and a broad industrial network, he said.
Türkiye built full defense ecosystem, not just products
Gorgun said the character of warfare is changing rapidly, with unmanned systems, artificial intelligence, electronic warfare, anti-drone technologies and rapid production capacity becoming decisive on the battlefield.
“Türkiye read this transformation early,” he said.
“We did not only develop products. We built an entire structure from design to production, from subsystems to software, from ammunition to maintenance and sustainment,” he added.
Belgian officials visiting companies including Baykar, Turkish Aerospace Industries, Aselsan, Roketsan and Havelsan saw not only individual products, but also engineering know-how, production discipline, field experience and rapid decision-making capacity, he said.
‘Today’s picture did not emerge on its own’
Gorgun said the momentum between Türkiye and Belgium did not develop suddenly, but was shaped through a step-by-step process.
He recalled earlier contacts with Francken during a NATO summit, meetings at IDEF, and the first Türkiye-Belgium Defense Industry Day in Brussels, where Turkish companies met Belgian counterparts.
“Today’s picture did not emerge on its own. Behind it is a process that has been carried out, followed up and matured step by step,” he said.
He said a recently signed Letter of Intent was an important step and could become a framework that aligns institutions, companies and decision-makers toward common goals if properly followed up.
‘Security cannot be imported’
Gorgun described the current global environment as a “geopolitical pandemic,” saying crises no longer remain confined to one region.
“A political crisis can turn into an energy crisis, an energy crisis into a supply crisis, and eventually affect the entire world,” he said.
“In such a world, you cannot remain dependent on the mercy of others. Security is not something that can simply be imported,” he added.
He said Türkiye’s offer to allies is based on win-win cooperation, strengthening each country’s own ecosystem while increasing mutual benefit.
“Our proposal is this: Let us prepare together not only for today’s needs, but also for tomorrow’s security challenges,” Gorgun said, adding that Belgium was among the countries responding to this call.
* Writing by Mucahithan Avcioglu
