Türkiye, Qatar, Pakistan, and Indonesia will sign a new memorandum of understanding in Doha to strengthen defense industry cooperation, Türkiye's Defense Industries Secretariat (SSB) announced.
The memorandum will build on existing defense projects among the four countries, marking a new step in Türkiye's approach to multilateral cooperation.
Efforts coordinated by the secretariat focus on moving beyond the supply of military platforms to joint production, technology transfer, interoperability, and the integration of supply chains.
In a statement, the secretariat said defense industry partnerships pursued with the support of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are among the strategic elements supporting Türkiye's foreign policy. It added that efforts focused on mass production and exports have gained momentum under Haluk Gorgun, the secretariat's head.
According to the Defense and Aerospace Industry Exporters' Association, Türkiye's defense and aerospace sector saw approximately $54 billion in exports from 2012 through the first nine months of 2026.
More than $30 billion of that total took place in 2023-2026, meaning the last four years accounted for more than 55% of the sector's exports over the period.
Defense and aerospace exports rose 48% year-on-year in 2025 to top $10 billion, while exports over the latest 12-month period surpassed $11 billion for the first time.
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), Türkiye boosted its arms exports 122% over the last five years, becoming the world's 11th-largest arms supplier. NATO allies account for 56% of Türkiye's defense and aerospace exports.
Qatar, one of the parties to the planned memorandum, has a longstanding defense industry partnership with Türkiye.
Bayraktar TB2 armed drones, armored vehicles, and fast attack craft supplied to the Qatari Armed Forces are among the prominent examples of bilateral cooperation.
Barzan Holdings, a subsidiary of Qatar's Defense Ministry, has also signed cooperation agreements in previous years with Turkish defense companies including Aselsan, STM, and MKE.
BARQ, a joint venture established in Qatar by Aselsan and Barzan Holdings, has begun local assembly, production, and calibration activities for SARP remote-controlled weapon systems and electro-optical equipment.
Projects carried out by Turkish companies in Qatar also enable the provision of defense industry solutions to third countries.
The PN MILGEM Babur-class corvette project is a leading example of defense industry cooperation between Türkiye and Pakistan.
Under the four-corvette project, led by main contractor Asfat, the first two vessels were built in Istanbul and the other two at Karachi Shipyard in Pakistan.
The project modernized Karachi Shipyard's production infrastructure and transferred shipbuilding and outfitting engineering capabilities to the local workforce. It thus contributed to Pakistan's domestic production capacity alongside the supply of naval platforms.
The KAPLAN MT medium-weight tank development project is a prominent example of Türkiye's defense industry cooperation with Indonesia.
Launched under an intergovernmental agreement between the secretariat and Indonesia's Defense Ministry, the KAPLAN MT was jointly designed and developed by Turkish defense company FNSS and Indonesia's PT Pindad.
Prototypes and the first series-production tanks manufactured by FNSS were delivered to Indonesian users. Production is continuing at PT Pindad in Indonesia under a technology transfer arrangement.
The memorandum planned for signing in Doha aims to strengthen Türkiye's separate defense industry partnerships with Qatar, Pakistan, and Indonesia within a multilateral framework.
The secretariat's defense diplomacy approach prioritizes not only defense system exports but also the development of joint production infrastructure, technology transfer, and long-term strategic partnerships.
The four-country memorandum is expected to help expand existing cooperation and pave the way for new joint defense industry projects.
