Turkey attaches "great importance" to the development of its defense industry despite embargoes, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday.
"As Turkey, we attach great importance to developing our defense industry, despite the many obstacles, secret and open embargoes that we face," Erdogan said in a video message to the 16th International Defense Industry Fair 2023 being held in Istanbul, Anadolu news agency reports.
"The Turkish defense industry sector has been writing a success story that has been followed with admiration by the whole world in recent years.
Our industry has proven its worth with its armored vehicles, artillery, rockets, air defense systems, and all kinds of weapons and radar systems tested in conflict zones", Erdogan said.
The president hailed Turkey's capabilities in drone technology, saying it is among the world’s top three countries in the field.
"Turkey, which is one of the 10 countries that make its own warship, is also an important exporter in this field", he added.
"Last year, we reached an export figure of $4.4 billion. In the first six months of this year, we achieved a record export level of $2.3 billion. Our target in 2023 is $6 billion", Erdogan said.
