Special to WorldTribune.com

ANKARA — South Korea has been playing a major role in projects for
Turkey’s military.

Industry sources said South Korea has been engaged in more than $2
billion worth of projects for Turkey’s military.

The sources said the East Asian state was selected by the Turkish Defense Ministry for Seoul’s willingness to transfer technology and production to Ankara.

“Turkey badly needs a credible Western-aligned industrial partner for
military production, and right now this is South Korea,” an industry source said.

South Korea has been involved in at least four major Turkish military
projects. The largest of them was the co-production of South Korean 155 mm artillery batteries for the Turkish Army, reported at $1 billion. For nearly 20 years, the artillery has been assembled in Turkey under a license by Seoul.

Hyundai Rotem has been partnered with Turkey’s Otokar for the
development of Ankara’s first indigenous main battle tank. Under the $500 million project, Hyundai would assemble four MBT prototypes, called Altay, by 2017.

Korea Aerospace Industries has become a major client of the Turkish
Air Force. KAI has been a partner with the state-owned Turkish Aerospace
Industries, to assemble 50 primary trainers in a program reported at $450
million. The sources said the last of the aircraft were expected to be
completed by 2013.

KAI has also been negotiating to become a partner in Turkey’s project to
develop a fighter-jet over the next decade. TAI has drafted a feasibility
study and was searching for international partners, including KAI, which
coproduced the T-50 light attack plane.

The government of Prime Minister Recep Erdogan has been lobbying Seoul
to award defense contracts to Turkish companies. TAI has been short-listed
for South Korea’s efforts to procure up to 50 attack helicopters by the end
of the decade. Turkey exports about $500 million worth of products to South
Korea, with Seoul providing $6.5 billion.

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