07.07.2026 16:01
The 36th NATO Summit of Heads of State and Government, held in Ankara, officially began alongside the Defense Industry Forum. ROKETSAN General Manager Murat İkinci, who evaluated both the historic summit and the forum with Haberler.com Editor-in-Chief Attorney Bedia Teymur and Haberler.com Ankara Representative Şerife Güzel, stated that they aim to increase Turkey's defense industry export potential from $10 billion to the $15-20 billion range through new collaborations achieved at this historic summit.
The 36th NATO Summit of Heads of State and Government, hosted by the capital Ankara, has officially begun alongside the Defense Industry Forum.
ROKETSAN General Manager Murat İkinci evaluated both the historic summit and the forum with Haberler.com Editor-in-Chief Attorney Bedia Teymur and Haberler.com Ankara Representative Şerife Güzel.
“WE ARE TRYING TO REALIZE A GREAT POTENTIAL FOR TURKEY TO CARRY OUT JOINT PROJECTS WITH NATO MEMBER COUNTRIES”
İkinci stated: “We are holding one of NATO's most important summits in Ankara, the Leaders' Summit. Alongside this, on the same day, discussions are taking place within NATO on how industries and defense sectors can come together and work jointly. We are currently at the Industry Forum. Here, in parallel with Turkey's technological developments and achievements in the defense industry, we are discussing the potential for cooperation in Europe and especially among NATO member countries. One of the key topics is how we can more quickly meet NATO's needs through cooperation within the alliance and how we can fulfill them faster. We are working on this. Of course, Turkey, with its industrial and technological level, is one of the most important countries capable of contributing to this issue. We are conducting our talks to ensure Turkey takes on a greater role and participates in joint project efforts as much as possible. Some of these result in signatures, while others continue with agreements to sign later. But from any perspective, we are trying to realize a great potential for Turkey to collaborate and carry out joint projects with NATO member countries regarding its defense. That is the importance of today, I can say briefly.”
IS NATO'S STRATEGY CHANGING?
Responding to the question, “Can we say NATO's strategy is changing?” İkinci evaluated: “NATO's strategy is changing in that countries now have to take on more responsibility. Also, all threats are changing. The threats seen in the latest conflicts are moving toward a point very different from what we conventionally think of. And in the face of these evolving threats, countries need to shift to a structure that adapts quickly and produces technology rapidly. The key issue here is evaluating how the highly flexible Turkish defense industry can contribute to this integration and these alliances. We believe we have a significant advantage in adapting to new technologies and in production capacity. We want to turn this into collaborations here.”
ECONOMIC CONTRIBUTION OF THE SUMMIT TO THE TURKISH DEFENSE INDUSTRY
Regarding the possible economic contributions of the NATO Summit to the Turkish defense industry, İkinci said: “Last year, we achieved exports exceeding $10 billion. But with these collaborations, there is potential for this export to quickly surpass $15-20 billion. Because both Europe and countries within NATO have announced large budgets for rearmament. For Turkey to get a share of these budgets, the discussions here are truly critical. These partnerships essentially provide us with preliminary work and open a door to increase export potential in this field. Through this door, we are striving to boost Turkey's defense industry exports as much as possible.”