“We Always Set Our Targets at the Highest Level”

Türkiye’s Makine ve Kimya Endüstrisi (MKE) ranked 80th among the world’s largest defence companies in the 2025 Defence News Top 100 list, but İlhami Keleş, General Manager, believes there is room for further growth.

“We always set our targets at the highest level and firmly believe that we will achieve even greater successes,” Keleş said in an exclusive interview in which he spoke about the company’s growing relationship with Qatar and its plans to enhance its global footprint.      

Early last year, MKE and Barzan Holdings Barzan Holdings signed an agreement for long term collaboration in defence technologies. What do you see as potential areas of cooperation?

With Qatar, one of our country’s strategic partners, we aim to strengthen our long-term cooperation in the defence industry and enhance mutual knowledge and technology sharing. The number of potential areas of cooperation is quite extensive, and MKE’s long-standing production experience and broad product portfolio are more than sufficient in this regard. The protocol signed last year between our Minister of National Defence, Yaşar Güler, and his Qatari counterpart, Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, was an important step taken within this framework.

At DIMDEX 2026, we have taken this cooperation even further by signing a new Memorandum of Understanding with Barzan Holdings to advance defence industry collaboration between our two countries. Under this MoU, a Joint Venture will be established between our company and Qatar. Through this venture, the foundations will be laid for factories in Qatar to produce, primarily, artillery ammunition and explosive systems.

Moreover, within the scope of the MoU, the sale of the MKE TOLGA Short-Range Air Defence System developed by our engineers to Qatar is also envisaged. At the same time, we will benefit from the existing knowledge and technologies of Barzan Holdings, Qatar’s largest defence industry company, to further enhance our own capabilities. In other words, every project we implement across air, land, and naval domains will serve as a concrete manifestation of our “Strategic Partnership,” adding strength to both countries.

There is increased demand for Türkiye’s defence products in the Middle East. What is MKE doing to enhance its presence in the region?

The Memorandum of Understanding we signed with Barzan Holdings on the opening day of DIMDEX 2026 marks our first critical step. In the coming days, we will continue our path by further strengthening our collaborations across the region.

How significantly has your international footprint grown in the last decade? If you were to pick one region where the company sees the maximum potential for growth, which one would it be?

I believe it would be most accurate to answer this question by referring to reports based on official data from international institutions. In the 2025 Defence News Top 100 list, we rose four places compared to 2024 and ranked 80th among the world’s largest defence companies, with a turnover of USD 1.2 billion. In addition, in the 2024 report published by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), MKE entered the list of the top 100 defence companies for the first time in its history, ranking 93rd. We always set our targets at the highest level and firmly believe that we will achieve even greater successes.

As for the second part of your question, I do not find it appropriate to single out a specific region or country. MKE has exported to 105 countries across five continents, and we  continue to work tirelessly to be present all around the world with our high-technology products.

The MKE BORAN 105mm lightweight howitzer was exported to Bangladesh in 2024. Have you seen interest in the product from other countries as well?

Following Bangladesh, we also exported the BORAN howitzer to a European country, North Macedonia, in 2025, and successfully completed its deliveries. Our 105 mm light towed howitzer BORAN is among the lightest howitzers in the world. This feature allows it to be easily transported both by helicopters and by land vehicles with load-carrying capability. It can be ready to fire in less than one minute.

As MKE, we are a company affiliated with the Ministry of National Defence, and the BORAN howitzer is already in the inventory of our armed forces. If a product is preferred by the Turkish Armed Forces, it is undoubtedly a mark of quality.

In November last year, MKE completed the successful live-fire test of the MKE Tolga Short-Range Air Defence System. What makes the system unique? When will serial production begin and do you plan on exporting it?

With the MKE TOLGA SHORAD system, we conducted live-fire activities both with our own security forces and in the presence of foreign mission chiefs from 14 countries. In both demonstrations, MKE TOLGA successfully neutralized threat drones under eight different scenarios.

The question “What makes this system unique?” is actually the very question that led to the development of MKE TOLGA. Today, we observe drone warfare in many parts of the world. Low-cost drones can cause serious damage to multi-million-dollar tanks, aircraft, and even naval platforms. If the attacking drone is low-cost, the system designed to neutralize it must also be cost-effective.

We developed this system by accurately assessing every parameter of the battlefield, based on the principle of being “Effective, Simple, and Affordable.” Our work on MKE TOLGA has been completed, and the system is now ready for mass production. We have also signed a Memorandum of Understanding for its induction into the inventory of the Qatari Armed Forces. During the visit of His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar, to our stand, we briefed him on the system in detail. In addition, there is interest from several other countries, and our discussions are ongoing.

How involved is MKE with Türkiye’s Steel Dome Project?

Çelik Kubbe can best be described as a “System of Systems.” It incorporates numerous components produced by various Turkish defence industry companies. We continue to work with other companies on the production of ammunition for the weapon systems included in this structure. In the close-in air defence layer what we refer to as the lower tier of Çelik Kubbe, MKE is also involved with its MKE TOLGA system.

What, in your opinion, are the primary reasons for the rapid growth of the Turkish defence industry?

The most significant factor behind the growth of our defence industry is the strong political will demonstrated by our President, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and the support provided to companies like ours in line with this vision. Turkey, which once faced embargoes, has now become a country that develops and strengthens its own technologies.

Another key factor is our qualified human capital. With our own workforce and expanding production capabilities, the localisation rate in our defence industry has exceeded 80 percent. We remain fully committed to achieving the targets set before us by working in line with our President’s vision of a “Fully Independent Defence Industry.”

What is the breakup in revenue between your domestic and international sales? Do you expect international sales to increase significantly over the next few years?

Our domestic and international sales revenues are currently well balanced. In addition to our existing ten factories, the establishment of new factories and production facilities is ongoing. Once these new facilities become operational, our production capacity will increase significantly, and accordingly, we anticipate a notable rise in our export ratios.