The Polish Government announced that a meeting between the MKE GM İlhami Keleş and Polish Deputy MoD Paweł Bejda took place regarding 155 mm ammunition ToT.
MKE delegation led by General Manager (GM) İlhami Keleş presented an offer to the Polish authorities regarding a Transfer of Technology (ToT) and local production of 155 mm artillery ammunition in Poland’s PGZ.
The government statement underlines that Poland wants to up its armament game due to security concerns following the Russo-Ukrainian War but reduce its reliance on foreign military equipment supplies. A plan for the local production of 155 mm ammunition is part of this desire.
The statement also states that the offer presented by the MKE is in line with the current needs of the Polish Armed Forces, signalling a positive atmosphere regarding the discussions.
The excessive ammunition expenditure of heavy artillery during the war has been a wake-up call to the world regarding the harsh logistics reality of a war between two countries. Up to that point, most of the conflicts had consisted of skirmishes or counter-insurgency operations with minimal intensity of artillery use.
In Ukraine’s case, the artillery pieces have been reliant on multiple foreign suppliers, such as the U.S. and European countries. At the same time, Russia both produced its ammunition and outsourced the re-supply to its political allies, like North Korea.
In response to this wake-up call, several Turkish firms have established production lines for 155 mm ammunition for both domestic use and exports.
MKE, already producing 155 mm ammunition, has opened up to exports on a larger scale. The discussions with the Polish MoD, with a positive view from the Polish authorities, are recent.
On March 12, Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk visited Ankara to meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. It is known that the current conflict in Ukraine, NATO, and bilateral relations, with an emphasis on economic and security issues, were discussed. Tusk stated various times that Turkiye is an essential country for Europe’s security.
ASSAN has facilities in Gerede and Ankara for the production of various ammunition, with the general manager Gürcan Okumuş underlying the goals of increasing the volume of 155 mm artillery ammunition. Additionally, in an interview during SAHA EXPO 2024, Okumuş stated to TurDef that the extended-range ammunition ranged from 155 mm to 56 km and 76 km.
ARCA, located in Çorum, has reportedly made an achievement in exports with a production of more than 100000 155 mm artillery ammunition for the U.S., according to a news article from Bloomberg.
Another Turkish firm with a critical contract signed with the U.S. is Repkon, which will establish production lines in the U.S., including TNT fillings. Additionally, Repkon will establish a similar facility in Pakistan per an agreement signed in November 2024.
