Turkish manufacturers at center of Pakistan's ongoing premier defense exhibition

By Aamir Latif

KARACHI, Pakistan (AA) – Turkish companies are at the center of Pakistan's premier defense exhibition, which is currently taking place in the country’s commercial capital Karachi, with visitors showing keen interest in the variety of modern military hardware displayed.

Large groups thronged Thursday the Turkish companies’ stalls at the sprawling Expo Center, exploring their interest in modern weaponry ranging from cutting-edge drones to supersonic missiles, as well as artificial intelligence and cybersecurity solutions.

With a contingent of around 30 companies, Türkiye has the largest representation in the biannual four-day fair "IDEAS 2024," which will conclude on Friday.

The 12th edition of the exhibition has become a major event in Pakistan's booming defense industry since 2002.

STM (Savunma Teknolojileri Mühendislik ve Ticaret A.S.) is displaying models of its "drone family," which includes the Kargu, Togan, and Boyga, unnamed aerial vehicles that loiter for munition, surveillance, and mortar drop, respectively.

Another standout at the fair is the STM500 special operations and attack submarine, which can operate in both shallow and blue waters and has a crew capacity of 22 and a maximum speed of up to 18 nautical miles.

Havelsan, another well-known Turkish Armed Forces company that excels in the defense and civil industries with advanced software solutions, showcased a number of its products as part of its digital troops concept. Among them is Caka, a submersible-kamikaze unmanned surface vehicle in the research and development stage.

The company is already engaged in several defense projects with the Pakistani Navy, including Agosta 90B class modernization and PN MILGEM class corvette’s main integrator.

Meteksan – one the largest defense industry companies in Türkiye – showcased radar systems, perimeter surveillance systems, laser and electro-optic systems, and communication systems.

The company also displayed underwater acoustic systems and simulators

Roketson showcased a variety of cruise and supersonic missiles, mainly Cakir, which is equipped with an inertial navigation system and can be launched from various platforms in the air, on land, or at sea.

The first delivery of Cakir is slated for 2025, while several delivery contracts with Far Eastern countries have been inked for 2026, a company official said.

Missiles from the MAM munition family, which can be fired from both fighter jets and UAVs, and UAV-230, an air-to-surface ballistic missile, are also on display at the defense fair.

Medium-range weapons like sniper and infantry rifles also remained the center of attraction at the stall of Makine Ve Kimya Endustrisi.

The company also displayed artillery ammunition with a range from 9mm to 155mm.

Other companies' stalls, including ASFAD, Makin eve Kimya Endustrisim, Tualcom, and Tisas, are also well-attended.