Headline: Minister Kacır Announces a 12% Surge in Defense Exports
The SAHA EXPO International Defense, Aviation and Space Industry Fair, organized by "SAHA İstanbul" from October 22-26 at the Istanbul Expo Center, was inaugurated with the attendance of the President of Defense Industries, Haluk Görgün, Minister of Industry and Technology, Mehmet Fatih Kacır, Minister of National Defense, Yaşar Güler, SAHA Istanbul Chairman of the Board and General Manager of BAYKAR, Haluk Bayraktar, alongside representatives from leading global defense industry companies.
In his speech, Kacır highlighted that while there were only 62 defense projects in 2002, this number has now exceeded a thousand. "Our exports in the first nine months of this year increased by 12% compared to the same period last year. The increase in the number of Turkish defense industry companies listed among the world's largest defense and aviation firms is a separate source of pride for us," he stated.
Minister Kacır emphasized that through TÜBİTAK, they have provided support to 1,493 defense projects and 2,233 scientists and young people, amounting to 38 billion Turkish Lira. He remarked, "We have carried out qualified R&D studies needed by our defense industry. The national air-to-air missiles GÖKDOĞAN and BOZDOĞAN, the new-generation missile family KUZGUN that can be launched from UAV and unmanned naval platforms, our national combat aircraft KAAN with critical main management computers and a real-time operating system for safe and high-performance flights are all the achievements of our engineers and technicians who are dedicated to our National Technology Initiative within TÜBİTAK."
During the program, President of Defense Industries Haluk Görgün, Minister of National Defense Yaşar Güler, and SAHA Istanbul Chairman of the Board Haluk Bayraktar also delivered speeches. SAHA EXPO is hosting 1,478 companies from over 120 countries, 178 foreign purchasing delegations, and 312 official delegations, including 25 at the ministerial level. The expo will be open for visits by international and Turkish professionals from October 22-24 and will be open to the public on October 25-26.