NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte pointed out the importance of production in the defense industry and said, “Türkiye has experienced a defense industry revolution.” he said. Rutte and his accompanying delegation visited ASELSAN as part of their Ankara contacts. Rutte was accompanied by Presidential Defense Industry President Haluk Görgün and ASELSAN General Manager Ahmet Akyol. Rutte addressed ASELSAN engineers at the program held at Gölbaşı Technology Base Çelikkubbe Event Center.
Pointing out the importance of accelerating production in the defense industry and encouraging innovation at the same time, Rutte said, “This is one of the most important priorities for NATO. Moreover, it will be one of the main agenda items of the NATO summit to be held in Ankara in July.” he said. Rutte emphasized the importance of production in the defense industry and said, “Because we must do better and more. We can learn a lot from what Turkey has done in this regard.
This is needed because we live in a dangerous world.” made his assessment. Stating that solid defense systems are needed for security, Rutte said: “We need the best competencies, we must integrate the latest technologies into our work. That’s why we need the most creative and innovative minds. That’s why I’m very happy that you are here and that you, as young people, chose to work in the defense industry. “Everything you do here helps ensure Turkey’s security, but also protects the security of countries that view Turkey as an extremely valuable ally.” NATO Secretary General: “Türkiye experienced a defense industry revolution.” He pointed out that ASELSAN is at the forefront of this revolution.
Pointing out the importance of continuing this effort and producing more and faster, Rutte said; He assessed that they “face great dangers” regarding Russia, China and Iran. Recalling that NATO successfully stopped ballistic ammunition fired from Iran and entering Turkish airspace, Rutte said, “NATO is prepared against such threats and will always do what is necessary to defend Turkey and all its allies.” he said. Stating that ensuring the security of 1 billion people in Europe and North America is not only the duty of NATO and allied armies, NATO Secretary General said, “The sector also has a responsibility in this regard.
“Our political leaders in NATO have committed to increasing defense spending and now more resources are actually being poured into the defense sector, which is a great development.” he said. Rutte stated that “groundbreaking” technologies have been developed at ASELSAN and continued: “I see this as a defense industry base throughout Türkiye. That’s how you realize most of these abilities, and that’s what we need. We also need a defense industry that stretches across Europe and North America, literally from Alaska to Ankara.
“We must continue to produce together, innovate together and buy from each other.” Recalling ASELSAN’s activities with Poland, Albania, Romania and Croatia, NATO Secretary General said, “Therefore, I am happy to address you, the young engineers who make all this possible.” he said. Pointing out that all companies should take steps to include young people, Rutte said: “Therefore, governments and companies must invest in education and professional development to make all this possible, and you are a shining example of how young people contribute to our collective security.
Transatlantic industrial enterprises provide great benefits for your economy and, above all, for your common security, and therefore for all of us. This is a successful way forward and the main priority of the Ankara Summit (NATO Summit).” Görgün: We will host the NATO Defense Industry Industry Forum. Presidential Defense Industry President Haluk Görgün answered the questions of the press members after the program. Stating that they conveyed Turkey’s defense industry infrastructure to Rutte, Görgün said, “He will try to express and explain this development in Turkey, the will our President has demonstrated and the path and policies he has taken, to all NATO allies.” he said.
Görgün stated that he expected Rutte’s experiences in Turkey and his contributions to production and agile approach, adding: “These were the good things we heard, he left impressed.” he said. In response to the question about what he watched most carefully during Rutte’s visit, Görgün said that in a limited time period, they explained the increase in production capacity, the agile management approach and the supply chain management approaches needed by the field, specifically ASELSAN.
Reminding that he had held meetings with Rutte twice before in which they discussed the Turkish defense industry in detail, Görgün said: “There was a meeting where I shared the Turkish defense industry. He was very impressed there. He already remembers the data there very much and mentioned them in many of his speeches. He talked about the development of the Turkish defense industry. He stated that working together with Turkey is important for all NATO allies and that it will benefit the allied NATO.
We will host the NATO Defense Industry Industry Forum next July. We provided information about it. In addition, we expressed the programs we hosted in Turkey for different units of NATO last year. “He expressed his satisfaction, that he found our interest and Turkey’s contribution important.” Stating that Rutte personally saw the importance given by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to the defense industry, Turkish youth and engineers, Görgün emphasized that the meeting was extremely productive.
Rapid renewal of inventories and emphasis on Steel Dome. Regarding the question about the increasing threat perception in the world and the importance of defense industry investments, Görgün pointed out that it was noticed that the inventories in the field in the world were depleted very quickly. Emphasizing that what is important is the speed and agility of replacing consumed equipment and ammunition, Görgün said that in this context, they conveyed to Rutte how the developments in different sectors were adapted to the defense industry and how they managed coordinated work with the private sector.
Stating that ASELSAN General Manager Ahmet Akyol also explained ASELSAN’s investments to Rutte in detail, Görgün concluded his words as follows: “We especially talked about the visit of our President on August 27, 2025, the delivery of the Steel Dome elements and the name of the investments. He was very impressed. He especially expressed the facilities where the air defense and Steel Dome subsystems will be produced and Turkey’s investments in this field, ASELSAN’s place and progress in the world rankings.” Mr.
Ahmet, especially the 40 percent growth, the growth in investments, as well as the reasons for technological preference… Frankly, it was a useful meeting, not only about one aspect of the investments made, but also about the planning in the process from the basic raw material and its operation to the final product. Source: AA
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