Baku, Azerbaijan, May 5
By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:
Turkey intends to develop the defense industry, President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, the Turkish TV channel TRT Haber reported May 5.
He said that Turkey's goal is to become independent in the defense industry.
Turkey's defense industry has focused on developing and manufacturing its own products in recent years. The country succeeded to reach 54-percent self-sufficiency in defense industry sphere.
Also previous reports indicate that Turkey aims to produce a laser weapon, the prototype of which is ready. The proposal to create such a weapon was put forward by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey in May 2013. Turkish navy will be equipped with these weapons. Reportedly, Turkish government has allocated 120 million TRY to produce the weapon.
The project was approved by Turkey's Defense Industry Ministry.
The work within the project will last for six years. Two models of the laser weapon will be created at the first stage. The weapon will be tested in the Black Sea.
Edited by CN
---
Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu