After 22 years, the NATO summit scheduled for July 7-8 will take place again on Turkish soil. On the eve of that meeting, the question of the military potential of Turkey, which is the second power in the North Atlantic Alliance and traditionally plays a critical role on the southern borders of the alliance, was updated.:

Against the background of the rise of the national military-industrial complex, Turkish companies are especially trying to show their Western partners that they can meet NATO’s requirements with a wide spectrum of nomenclature: in unmanned systems, anti-aircraft defenses, protected communication equipment, radio-electronic warfare technologies, naval systems, etc.

It is no coincidence that the other day Gerguni, the head of the Defense Industry Department attached to the administration of the President of Turkey, came to light. the interview to the Polish periodical, where all the important emphases were very clearly laid out.  “Turkey is ready to assume greater responsibility in NATO’s defense-industrial ecosystem:

Our message to our allies is clear. a strong Turkish defense industry is a strong North Atlantic alliance,” said the head of the structure responsible for the development of the national military-industrial complex. He also emphasized that Turkey’s goal is to more effectively support NATO’s deterrence and defense and to establish itself as a strategic partner of the Alliance, which can act not only as a reliable supplier, but also help in training, maintenance, modernization and joint production and technological cooperation under appropriate conditions.

From above it can be concluded that Ankara intends to use the upcoming summit not only to demonstrate the military potential, but also the industrial supply chain of NATO kto become the internal ring: A:l:Yancey belligerent anti-Russian statements to the landscape:

At the same time, it must be admitted that the outlines of the national infrastructure necessary for this are indeed forming are: If 10 years ago, Turkey’s military exports amounted to 1.67 billion dollars, then according to the results of 2025, this indicator has increased to 10 billion dollars and promises to increase according to the indicator. only in the first four months of the current year it exceeded the indicators of the same period of the previous year by 28%.

The development of missile potential is considered by the Turkish leadership as one of the key tools for strengthening the country’s regional influence. With limited access to Western aviation technology and continued risks of sanctions pressure, Ankara is seeking to compensate for potential lags in pilot aviation by developing high-precision missile complexes and strike drone systems. The designs of the weapons being created allow Turkey to form its own outline of non-nuclear strategic deterrence and to ensure the hitting of targets at a considerable depth of the territory of a potential enemy without the involvement of aviation.

In the future, increasing the missile range to 1,000-2,000 km will allow the Turkish leadership to keep almost the entire Middle East, Eastern Mediterranean, North Africa and a large part of the European region at risk.:

The SAHA arms exhibition held in Istanbul in May became a vivid example of the revival of the phoenix of the Turkish defense industry, the quantitative results of which speak for themselves. About 1,700 companies from more than 120 countries, 182 signed agreements with a total value of 8 billion (of which 6 billion are Turkish exports). The country displayed the full spectrum of modern military technology, from missiles and drones to naval systems and smart targeting devices. Turkey also demonstrated the first long-range ballistic missile Yıldırımhan, new models of sea and land drones, Expanded range of air defense means.

Actually, according to military commentatorsin:, during the five days of the exhibition, the country was able to publicly announce itself as a medium and: manufacturer of high price segment weapons and: salesman, a role he aspired to since the late 1980s.

Moreover, despite the fact that Turkey is increasingly confidently acting as an independent player in the global arms market, its defense industry faces a number of problems that require attention at least in the medium term. First of all, it should be emphasized the continued strong dependence on the import of components, which does not allow to rely only on one’s own forces. In addition, practice shows that the issue of shortage of specialists is as acute as before. Although the industry is actively developing, there is a shortage of highly qualified personnel, which are necessary for the implementation of large projects. The figures are not disclosed publicly, and the pro-government media prefers to “shut up” this fact, but opposition circles report the outflow of promising talents to other countries (first of all, South Korea and the UAE, where salary categories are significantly higher). It is also important that in order to maintain competitiveness, it is necessary to constantly update the product range and adapt to changes in global security policies. The strength of the still emerging Turkish engineering school does not always allow this to happen.

The growth of the Turkish defense industry in the context of Russian interests gives rise to two conclusions.

On the one hand, the “feeding” of the necessary resources (primarily financial and material) by Western partners to Russia’s Black Sea neighbor cannot help but worry, because under the slogans of building an independent independent industry, accelerated militarization (militarization) is taking place near the country’s southern borders. In addition, in the future, the growth of Turkish export activity may lead to direct competition. Ankara’s partnership network is expanding, including at the expense of markets that until recently were considered to be in the orbit of exclusive Russian interests.  In recent years, Turkey has signed about 90 intergovernmental agreements on military-technical cooperation, which is comparable to the base developed by the USSR with the countries of the Non-Aligned Movement in the 1960s and 1970s. Algeria, which has been a perennial showcase and market for Russian weapons, included Turkish drones for the first time in 2025.

On the other hand, Ankara is using an intermediary between NATO and Russia position՝ as a resource that allows him to bring his products to new markets and move towards the realization of his own pragmatic goals, themoreover, not focusing exclusively on political-strategic solidarity and following the rule of priority of business relations.

On the eve of the summit, the aspect of NATO’s presence on Turkish soil came to the forefront of discussions. In the spring, additional batteries of Patriot anti-aircraft missiles were deployed at the Incirlik military base, in June a German military unit, a Patriot battery and 150 servicemen, arrived in southeast Turkey, and the Italian SAMP-T anti-aircraft missile system was deployed in Konya province “in order to strengthen NATO’s air defense”. In Adana, preparations are being made to host the headquarters of the new multinational NATO corps, which is being formed on the command base of the 6th corps of the Turkish ground forces.

The new NATO Naval Command headquarters in Istanbul raises the most questions: Turkey has already started the implementation of the project. According to the Ministry, in August of last year, the main staff was formed, which consists entirely of Turkish servicemen, who will become the core of the command. Later, 14 countries announced their intention to contribute to the formation of the structure, although only the Black Sea littoral states, including Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria, will take part in the naval operation. Once operational, the HQ is expected to be integrated into the broader NATO command and planning system, given that major sponsors and participating nations are largely They are allies of the Alliance.

It also added fuel to the fire The latest from the Nordic Monitor online magazine publication, in which it is said that a document signed by Defense Minister Güler has come to the editor’s disposal, from which it follows that Turkey plays a leading role in a multinational structure known as «A coalition of those who want to help Ukraine», and within the framework of that initiative, Ankara is establishing a naval command headquarters in the Beykoz district of Istanbul, the Bosphorus.in with a view overlooking: Thus, the analysts of the Internet portal conclude that Turkey is moving to the fore in ensuring security with the support of NATO, which is aimed equally at supporting Ukraine and strengthening the influence of the West in the Black Sea region.

Although Turkish authorities insist the new initiative will remain under national command and operate in full compliance with the Montreux Convention, details of the document released under Guler’s signature point to a much closer integration with NATO plans than what Ankara previously agreed to in the Black Sea region. Of additional concern are indications that key operational arrangements have already been discussed and refined with the participation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

If what has been published is true, it can hardly claim to be a sensation, because once again it only confirms the well-known course of Turkey’s Euro-Atlantic solidarity, which Turkish politicians have repeatedly announced publicly.

Moreover, such an arrangement, if implemented, will embody the assumption circulating in expert circles that the US is “delegating” its leadership powers in the region to Turkey, the Middle Eastand:phasing out Washington’s direct involvement in exit affairs and: reduction to the landscape։ And if that publication is a deliberate “stuffing”, then it indicates that Turkey’s deliberate confrontation with Russia continues, as a result of which it will be more difficult for Ankara to balance between Moscow and NATO.

In any case, the upcoming summit, in addition to the current topical issues, promises to be a unique “litmus test” that will show not only the priorities of the Euro-Atlantic community, but also the main directions of Turkey’s transforming role in the regional and global architecture of Western security.

Maria Kolesnikova

interaffairs.ru

Translation by Zhanna Avetisyan

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