BI calls the actions of the Turkish army a signal to NATO

MOSCOW, August 9 — RIA Novosti . Turkey is investing in the defense industry and expanding the production of military equipment in order to be less dependent on partners in the North Atlantic alliance, bypass the sanctions imposed against Ankara and thereby send a «signal» to NATO allies. Business Insider columnist Benjamin Brimelow writes about this. In June, the Turkish Navy tested the Atmaka (Hawk) anti-ship cruise missile (ASM). It was launched from the newest Ada-class corvette TCG Kınalıada, which was also launched by local shipbuilders. «Atmaka» will replace US-made anti-ship missiles «Harpoon» for the Turkish army. In recent years, Ankara has stepped up its efforts to produce weapons: guns, missiles, tanks and warships. This allowed her to become more self-sufficient in the defense industry, and also turned the country into an exporter of weapons, the author writes. Turkey has long possessed a large and relatively powerful military-industrial base, which allows it to produce various infantry weapons under the license of foreign manufacturers. It is one of several states that have permission to assemble F-16 fighters. In the US Congress, it was proposed to exclude Turkey from NATO According to the columnist, Ankara focused on the development of its own military equipment due to the sanctions imposed on it by its partners in the North Atlantic Alliance. In addition, according to Brimelow, Turkey is building up the capabilities of the army because of a much stronger country in the neighborhood — Russia, which has asserted its influence in the Black Sea. This is also facilitated by the fact that Washington excluded Ankara from the program for the production of fifth generation F-35 fighters, and Berlin is reluctant to modernize the Turkish fleet of Leopard 2 tanks, the article says. «The disputes with its neighbors and NATO allies prompted Ankara to think that Turkish solutions to some problems related to the military-industrial complex can be found,» the author summed up. Turkey urged Russia to come to terms with arms supplies to Ukraine