Turkey has formalised a $350 million defence partnership with Egypt that combines arms exports with industrial co-production, signalling a deeper strategic realignment in military cooperation between the two regional powers.
The agreement was concluded between Turkey’s state-owned Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation (MKE) and Egypt’s Ministry of Defence during President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s state visit to Cairo for talks with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
Under the package, Egypt will acquire the Tolga short-range air defence system in a $130 million deal, providing enhanced protection against drones and low-altitude aerial threats. The remainder of the agreement — approximately $220 million — will be directed toward building defence-industrial capacity inside Egypt.
This includes the establishment of a 155mm long-range artillery ammunition factory and production lines for 7.62mm and 12.7mm munitions, supported by a jointly owned venture company to manage operations. The structure is designed not only to supply Egypt’s armed forces but also to position the country as a regional defence manufacturing and export hub serving African and Middle Eastern markets.
Expanding Military-Industrial Integration
Turkey–Egypt defence relations have shifted in recent years from limited transactional arms deals toward sustained military-industrial cooperation and operational engagement.
After nearly a decade of diplomatic strain, the two countries resumed combined naval and air exercises in September 2025 under the “Friendship Sea” framework, involving Turkish surface combatants, submarines, and F-16 fighter aircraft training alongside Egyptian naval and air forces.
Industrial collaboration was further highlighted at EDEX 2025, where jointly developed platforms such as the Hamza-1 VTOL unmanned aircraft and the Aqrab unmanned ground vehicle were showcased as symbols of deepening co-production ties.
This trajectory continued in March 2025 with a strategic agreement enabling the local manufacture of advanced unmanned ground vehicles in Cairo, underscoring a long-term shift toward integrated defence production and shared capability development between Ankara and Cairo.
