09.11.2011

TOBB Turkey Defense Council President Yılmaz Küçükseyhan stated that the 2010 defense expenditure increased by 1.3% in respect to the previous year, increasing from 1.531 trillion dollars to 1.630 trillion dollars, however, the first 5 countries in the list of those which we have engaged in trade regarding defense industry have not changed (USA, China, United Kingdom, France and Russia). Emphasizing that world defense expenditure has increased by 51% since 2001; Küçükseyhan stated that there is a drop of 2.8% in European Countries.

- “Race for the 60 billion dollar defense industry market share”

Drawing attention to Saudi Arabia, which has set aside 86.9 billion dollars until 2015 for the defense industry, Küçükseyhan identified Brazil as a rising, however hard to access market.

Stating that the lack of an export fund or credit mechanism similar to the Foreign Military Financing (FMF) present in the USA and Europe causes loss of superiority in some markets, Küçükseyhan said that the subject has been broached to the Science, Industry and Technology Minister Nihat Ergün and many other authorities, work has started to provide a budget for it.

The Defense Industry Undersecretariat Deputy Undersecretary Sedat Güldoğan stated that the defense industry has become institutionalized and that the industry has become a brand.

Güldoğan reported that the advance of technology in Ankara is directly related to the defense industry. “When identifying needs, the industries capabilities and public needs must be balanced with input into needs via domestic sources.”