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Turkey's military programs with Israel remain in place 

Turkey’s military ties with Israel have not been hindered by the ongoing tension over Israel’s killing of civilians on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla. Defense Minister Vecdi Gönül says there are no large-scale joint projects, but ongoing programs with Israeli defense companies are worth hundreds of millions of dollars and will continue. In another development, Turkey has suspended all state water and energy projects with Israel

Israeli Military Industries had upgraded 170 Turkish M60 main battle tanks for $670 million.

(Hürriyet photo)

Despite unprecedented tensions between Turkey and Israel over the military attack on a Turkish aid flotilla bound for Gaza, several defense industry programs between the two countries remain in place.

National Defense Minister Vecdi Gönül on Tuesday made it clear that Turkey would not cut its defense cooperation with Israel, but said presently there were no large-scale or "serious projects" left anyway.

Heron (UAV)

One ongoing program is the delivery process of Heron medium-altitude, long-endurance drone systems made by Israel.

After delays of more than two years, an Israeli partnership of Israel Aerospace Industries and Elbit managed to formally deliver six Heron unmanned aerial vehicles to the Turkish military in April. Four other Herons are expected later this month or in July, Gönül said.

One of the six delivered Herons underwent a moderate accident on the ground, but officials said it would be repaired. Five Herons have started operations.

The $183 million Heron contract was signed in 2005, but the program was dogged by technical difficulties from the start.

Separately, the Turkish military earlier this year leased a Dominator drone from Israel’s Aeronautics Defense Systems. The military uses the Israeli drones mainly for reconnaissance purposes against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK.

Other programs

In another ongoing program with Israel, the Turkish land vehicles manufacturer BMC signed a contract last year worth a few hundred million dollars with the Turkish procurement agency to produce a total of 468 Mine-Resistant Ambush-Protected, or MRAP, vehicles.

MRAP

BMC's model is based on the Navigator vehicle, developed by Israel's Hatehof company. The BMC vehicles will go to the Turkish Army, and are hoped to prove effective against improvised explosive devices planted by the PKK.

In addition, Israel's IAI is providing specific radars for Turkish fighter jets and Israel's Elbit is selling some avionic systems in Turkey's program to modernize the aging T-38 trainer aircraft.

Also, Turkey's military electronics company, Aselsan, and Israeli Military Industries, which has upgraded 170 Turkish M60 main battle tanks for $670 million, late last year signed an agreement to jointly modernize M60 tanks in the world armies using this specific kind of tank.

Despite ongoing cooperation, defense analysts agree that amid the present political tensions, fresh large-scale defense industry deals between Turkey and Israel are highly unlikely in the foreseeable future.

Privately, Israeli officials also have voiced reluctance to sell strategically important weapons systems to Turkey. In the most remarkable example, Israel's Arrow 2 system is absent in a Turkish competition to buy the country's first long-range antimissile air defense systems worth between $1 billion and $2 billion. U.S., European, Russian and Chinese companies are eyeing the Turkish contract.

Turkey and Israel raised their ties to a strategic partnership degree in the mid-1990s, and in ensuing years Israeli companies won Turkish contracts altogether worth billions of dollars to upgrade F-4 and F-5 fighter aircraft and M60 tanks and sell other weapons

Τhursday, June 3, 2010

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ΑNKARA - Hürriyet Daily News
(Ο τίτλος,η υπογράμμιση-χρωματισμός και η εικονογράφηση των αναρτήσεων γίνονται με ευθύνη του blogger)