Türkiye’s defense industry makes significant gains for economy

By Goksel Yildirim

ANKARA (AA) – Türkiye’s defense industry has been rapidly increasing, producing homegrown products and contributing significantly to the country’s economy, as the ratio of defense spending to gross domestic product (GDP) decreased with lessened reliance on foreign solutions.

In the early 2000s, Türkiye increased its defense spending, focusing on strengthening its regional and global influence, however, the development of homegrown defense products led to less military spending and more economic growth over the years, according to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

Türkiye’s defense expenditures amounted to $7.2 billion in 2001, making up 3.6% of the country’s GDP, as the industry was heavily dependent on foreign sources. This ratio shot up to 3.8% in the next year.

However, in 2023, while Türkiye’s defense expenditures rose to $17 billion, the spending to GDP ratio fell significantly to 1.5%, primarily driven by the use of homegrown defense industry technologies, which eased the burden of military spending on the country’s budget.

Many defense industry products, such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs), armored land vehicles, homegrown vessels, missiles, radar systems, ammunition, critical subsystems, and more are now developed through domestic means by Türkiye-based defense companies.

Domestic defense production also resulted in significantly reduced import costs while providing strategic autonomy in defense manufacturing to Türkiye.

From 1970 to 1979, Türkiye’s military and defense expenditures made up 50% of all imports. This rate dropped to 10% in early 2000s.

Domestically made defense products accounted for 20% of the country’s defense industry in 2002. This rate soared to between 75% to 80% in 2023.

The success of domestic manufacturing in the defense industry resulted in greatly reduced foreign purchases and increased capacity of Turkish firms to produce defense technologies.

Türkiye’s defense exports grew from $250 million in 2002 to $5.5 billion in 2023, revealing the contributions of domestic defense manufacturing to the economy, according to data from the Turkish Exporters Assembly.

The country’s homegrown defense technologies put Türkiye on the map as an independent in the defense industry, while making significant contributions to national security and the lessening of foreign dependency.

Turkish defense firms’ successes not only greatly enhanced Türkiye’s military, economic, and technological development, but also employment, as the rapidly rising number of defense firms created many jobs.

*Writing by Emir Yildirim