TURKEY AND RUSSIA: MILITARY-TECHNICAL COOPERATION TODAY AND TOMORROW
Abstract
In the last few years, relations between Turkey and Russia have acquired a new quality: the countries have complemented their political dialog at the top level with economic and energy cooperation, which at times comes close to strategic partnership. In the military-technical sphere, Turkey maintains close relations with the U.S. and other NATO members; in the 1990s, it actively promoted its contacts with Israel, while recently it has been seeking closer military-technical and military-industrial cooperation with Russia.
To a certain extent, the interest of the Turkish political establishment in Russia’s latest HighTech weapons and military equipment is associated with the much more pronounced “Russian trend” in Ankara’s foreign policy. The Turks, who are seeking more balanced relations with the West (and the United States in particular), tend to look at Russia as an “alternative partner.”
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References
See: M. Ziganshin, Rossia-Turtsia: ot dvustoronnego sotrudnichestva k mnogoplanovomu sotrudnichestvu, Bishkek,2007, p. 28.
See: I. Torbakov, Making Sense of the Current Phase of Turkish-Russian Relations, The Jamestown Foundation,October 2007.
See: M. Ziganshin, op. cit., pp. 31-32.
Turkey initiated the group in 1998, but the agreement was not formalized until 2001. Its basic instruments envis-aged search and rescue and humanitarian operation, environmental protection, mine clearing, joint exercises, etc. as its main functions (see: [http://www.blackseafor.org/english/operational.php]).
See: M. Ziganshin, op. cit., pp. 54-56.
See: “Weapons Transfers and Violations of Laws of War in Turkey,” Human Rights Watch Arms Project, USA,
, pp. 36-37; S. Kandaurov, “Russian Arms Exports to Greece, Cyprus and Turkey,” Moscow Defense Brief, available at [http://mdb.cast.ru/mdb/2-2001/at/raegct/].
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See: V. Litovkin, “The Future of Russian-Turkish Military-Technical Cooperation,” RIA Novosti, 26 June, 2006.
Ibidem.
See: S.M. Zadonskiy, “Sostoyanie i perspektivy voenno-tekhnicheskogo sotrudnichestva Rossii i Turtsii,” IIIiBV,
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So far, the Turkish Air Force has no long-range air defense complexes; Turkey’s air space is protected by close-range surface-to-air missile systems (Rapier, Stinger, Atýlgan) and modernized medium-range I-Hawk.
See: “Türkiye’nin füzesi hangisi olacak,” Hürriyet, 15 February, 2010; “F-35’te aslan payi Türk þirketlerinin,”2 February, 2010, available at [http://www.ihlas.net.tr].
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See: “Turkey Hopes to Buy S-400 Air Defense Systems from Russia,” RIA Novosti, 27 April, 2009.
See: “Ýsrail yerine Ruslardan füze alýyoruz, Hürriyet, 11 April, 2008; Türk Silahlý Kuvvetlerinde Rus silahlarý dönemi, available at [http://www.nethaber.com], 11 April, 2008. Kornet-E rockets proved efficient against Israeli Merka-va Mk4 tanks and against American M1 Abrams tanks (used by Hezbollah and Iraqis).
See: “‘Kornet-E’ Rus füze kompleksi Türk askerleri tarafýndan teslim alýndý,” available at [http://turkish.ruvr.ru/
/12/17/3155702.html].
See: T. Kerimov, “Russia Eyes Turkish Arms Market,” available at [http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/07/15/124246 22.html], 15 July, 2010.
See: O. Cetinkaya, “Russia and Turkey: Military Aspects of a Joint Responsibility for the Region,” available at
[http://www.eurasiacritic.com/articles/russia-and-turkey-military-aspects-joint-responsibility-region], July 2009.
See: L. Sariibrahimoðlu, “Turkey Sends Delegation to Russia for Mi-28 Attack Helicopters,” Today’s Zaman,8 June, 2009.
See: “ATAK Projesi nadir,” available at [http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/9263677.asp?gid=233&sz=31569],24 June, 2008.
See: “Turkey Shortlists 2 Attack Helicopters,” available at [http://www.xairforces.com/newsd.asp?newsid=236&newst=4].
See: “Allied Leaders Agree on NATO Missile Defense System,” available at [http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natolive/news_68439.htm], 20 November, 2010.
Turkey will buy 100-120 F-35 aircraft totaling $10-12 billion. The first aircraft will be delivered in 2014 to replace the obsolete F-16 and fighter-bomber F-4 which fought in Vietnam (see: “Turkey to Possibly Buy 20 More F-35 Fighters,”Hürriyet Daily News, 7 October, 2009).
See: “Savunma sanayinde hedefler aþýldý,” 26 Nisan, 2011, available at [http://ekonomi.milliyet.com.tr/savunma-sanayinde-hedefler asildi/ekonomi/ekonomidetay/26.04.2011/1382547/default.htm; http://www.sasad.org.tr/en/turkiye-savunma-sanayiinin-2010-yili-verileri-aciklandi.html].
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