"In order to increase Europe's defense capacity and overcome the production crisis, Turkish defense companies must be integrated into EU projects. EU-NATO cooperation would be incomplete without Türkiye's production power!"
These striking statements belong to NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe, General Alexus G. Grynkewich.
There are also reports supporting these words of Grynkewich, who is responsible for the strategic planning, preparation and execution of NATO military operations. Let's take a look at the photo revealed by the "Annual Defense Readiness Report" prepared by the European Defense Agency...
The report draws attention to critical military deficiencies of members such as "joint procurement, ammunition stocks and interoperability" despite record defense budget increases in European countries. He emphasizes that the problem in Europe is not "lack of resources" but "fragmented structure". That is, each country is doing something in its own way, but the compatibility of technologies and systems is out of the question! The cost of this joint action and coordination gap to member countries varies between 18 billion and 57 billion euros annually.
As stated by Kaja Kallas, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the fragilities in the continent's military capacity have become a problem that cannot be postponed anymore. German Chief of General Staff General Carsten Breuer's reminder that soldiers cannot be successful without the contribution of industry and civil society and his call for "total defense" for his country are another reflection of the same need...
Europe is trying to rebuild its defenses. Budgets worth billions of euros are announced, new defense funds are created, successive plans are put into effect to increase ammunition production, develop common supply mechanisms and strengthen Europe's defense industry. But the problem facing Europe is not just money. The real question is how quickly, how coordinated and how jointly this money can be transformed into a defense capability.
The slowness of basic decision-making mechanisms due to the EU's bureaucracy is legendary! Mechanisms to get concrete results have almost fallen by the wayside... So how will Europe overcome all these problems?
This is where Türkiye enters the equation. From where?
Because Türkiye is not only a country that develops defense industry products. With the model and production capacity it has introduced in recent years, it can bring together its operational experience in the field on the same ground with defense projects established with different countries.
The developments before, during and after the Karabakh war are the most visible examples of this... Türkiye's different defense systems, especially unmanned aerial vehicles, are no longer just export items; It has turned into game-changing systems that are used in different geographies and based on their results. More importantly, Ankara does not build this capacity only through sales relationships. Defense industry collaborations in a wide geography from Indonesia to Pakistan, from Azerbaijan to the Gulf countries; It promotes joint production, technology sharing, education and long-term security relations.
Another factor that increases the importance of Türkiye in terms of Europe is geography. Türkiye is a critical part of the Euro-Atlantic security architecture with its location on the southeastern flank of NATO. Add to this the rapidly growing defense industry competence in recent years, and it becomes increasingly difficult for Brussels to keep Ankara out of Europe's security discussions.
At this stage, the voice coming from Poland is important. Poland's Minister of National Defense Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, one of the countries that directly feels the Russian threat, openly praises Türkiye's defense industry model and says that the leap made by Türkiye can also set an example for Poland. This approach also shows that the debate on Türkiye in Europe cannot be read only through the current deadlock in Ankara-Brussels relations. While the security problem facing Europe is growing, Türkiye's defense industry capacity, which can be a solution to the problems, is also growing.
This situation is so obvious that Europe would have to be "in great blindness or blind obsession" not to see it. Athens' anti-Turkey policy, saying "at all costs", also puts the EU in trouble. The historical obsession of some EU countries, especially Greece, towards Türkiye is one of the political barriers to defense cooperation between Ankara and Europe. The defense crisis that Europe is experiencing today signals that security needs should now take precedence over political preferences.
As the aftershocks of the trauma of the diminishing role of the United States in European security continue, the need to reinforce the continent's own defense power is felt more and more every day.
Here, Türkiye's strategic importance for Europe emerges once again.
Ankara is no longer just a NATO ally in Europe's security equation; It is one of the indispensable partners of this equation with its ever-growing defense industry, production capacity, operational experience and expanding international cooperation network.
Therefore, the question Europe is looking for an answer to is "Should we cooperate with Türkiye?" not.
The real question is:
How long can Europe stay away from Türkiye's modern capacity while rebuilding its own security architecture? When it comes to security, it is not possible to look at the map of Europe and take Ankara out of the equation.
