ASELSAN General Manager Ahmet Akyol made important statements at the NATO Defence Industry Forum held in Ankara. Akyol noted that more than half of the company's exports were made to NATO member countries, drawing attention to Turkey's rise in the defence industry.
Akyol said that the forum has now become a part of NATO and that Turkey is in an advantageous position in this field. "With the strength of our geography and our military power, we have now consolidated our position as an important player in NATO with our defence industry strength as well," Akyol said, emphasizing that the Turkish army, equipped entirely with domestic industry, has become stronger on the international stage.
Steel Dome will contribute to NATO's security architecture
Akyol reported that some elements of the "Steel Dome" air defence system developed by ASELSAN are considered a "capability acquisition" by NATO, and explained that they have created an integrated layered air defence architecture under the leadership of the state. Noting that they have increased mass production and made numerous deliveries, Akyol said, "The contribution of the systems we are making today to NATO has been valued by both radar and high, medium and low altitude air defence systems."
Akyol added that low earth orbit (LEO) satellites will also be used for surveillance purposes and that they assess all these systems will contribute to NATO's security architecture.
Artificial intelligence and quantum chip investments
Stating that they are investing in entirely new technologies, Akyol said that the battlefield has taken on an artificial intelligence-based approach, and that a period dominated by network-based and autonomous systems has begun. Akyol reported that ASELSAN is developing capabilities such as kamikaze drones and underwater vehicles, and disclosed that the company operates on a closed network and has Turkey's largest data centre.
Emphasizing that more than 2,000 engineers work solely on artificial intelligence projects daily, Akyol said that they are developing special models with sensitive data obtained from the military environment and are in the process of integrating them into products. Akyol announced that the Superconducting Quantum Processor Unit (QPU) Development Project was signed last week, that quantum chips have been designed, and that a production house is being built in Ankara.
NATO Secretary General's visit and LEO satellite mission
Noting that these innovative technologies were on the agenda during NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte's visit to ASELSAN, Akyol said, "Because we have established at ASELSAN the much-desired approach of being innovative, fast, highly productive, able to deliver quickly, and able to implement the latest technologies, he has been referencing our company several times."
Akyol reminded that all of ASELSAN's products are NATO-compatible and that the Turkish army is NATO's second largest army. Akyol disclosed that more than 50 percent of all exports last year were made to NATO-aligned countries, and predicted that this ratio will increase further in the coming period.
Finally, announcing that the design task for secure communication satellites in LEO orbit has been assigned to ASELSAN within the scope of next-generation technologies to be jointly developed by NATO member countries, Akyol said, "This task is an important indicator of our country's engineering competence in space technologies and the international trust placed in us." He added that space will be equipped with LEO satellites in the coming period.
