Under the spotlight of Istanbul Innovation Week, Erdogan showed the world a hard core transcript: Türkiye's defense and aerospace products have flown to most corners of the world. This is not only a leap in export numbers, but also reflects the country's ambition to reshape its economic genes through technological startups and high-end manufacturing.

On October 16, 2026, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Türkiye said that in 2025, Türkiye's defense and aerospace product exports will cover 180 countries and regions, and the total export volume will exceed 10 billion dollars.

Defense aerospace exports are impressive

Erdogan made a speech at the 2026 Türkiye Innovation Week in Istanbul, saying that the export of national defense and aerospace products exceeded 10 billion dollars last year, and were sold to 180 countries and regions around the world.

He focused on Türkiye's series of measures to strengthen scientific research strength, support science and technology start-ups, and promote the manufacturing of high value-added products. With the help of the National Technology Action Plan, the country has established a comprehensive R&D and innovation infrastructure, which is one of the few systems in the world.

Set goals for the development of science and technology innovation

Erdogan proposed that Türkiye strives to cultivate 100000 technology start-ups by 2030, with a total valuation of $100 billion. Keywords: Türkiye, R&D innovation, industrial transformation

He introduced that the Istanbul Atat ü rk Airport terminal will be renovated and upgraded to create the Istanbul terminal brand and build a globally leading science and technology incubation center. The development of advanced technology is not an optional direction for Türkiye, but the only way. The country needs to accelerate its shift towards high value-added production models.Editor/Gong Ziwei