Turkey is exploring domestically developed fifth-generation fighter jets with the cooperation of its allies like Azerbaijan and Pakistan.

According to an interview with CNN Turk, the head of the Turkish Defence Industry Committee Ismail Demir said, “Our doors are open for cooperation in this direction. In particular, we are talking about cooperation with countries such as Azerbaijan and Pakistan, and we propose to unite efforts in this direction.”

Turkey has been pushing its ambitious indigenous fifth-generation fighter jet, known as the TF-X National Combat Fighter. The TF-X has been planned to be a single-seat twin-engine all-weather multi-role fighter developed by the Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) along with BAE Systems which is providing some technical assistance for the development of the fighter jet.

TAI and BAE Systems signed a £100 million strategic agreement in January 2017 for collaborating on the stealth fighter project. As part of this contract, BAE Systems will provide engineering consultancy services and project-related support.

The Undersecretariat for Defence Industries (SSM) of the Ministry of Turkish National Defence and TAI inked a deal in August 2016 for the design and development of a home-grown fighter jet.

The aircraft is expected to provide a high level of situational awareness, sensor fusion techniques, low observability, and advanced weapon systems.

“We are and will continue to take certain steps in this direction, because the resources of one country may not be enough to implement a project of this scale. Of course, each country has its own skills and abilities. It is very important to combine these abilities. We received positive signals in this regard, we said that we are completely open to partnership. We will continue to develop steps in this direction with countries from which we received positive signals, and we believe that we must continue efforts in this direction,” Demir said.

Turkey has been pushing to get Pakistan on board for jointly developing missiles and warplanes, with the hope that a partnership with Pakistan will provide Ankara access to Chinese military technology.

According to Bloomberg, Turkish defense and government officials conducted several talks with their Pakistani counterparts. One of which is held for co-manufacturing of military hardware with Pakistan. Turkey views Pakistan as a key ally and potential partner for both the Siper missile as well as the TF-X fighter jet.

However, they did not reveal if these talks have received Beijing’s consent for sharing China’s technology with Turkey.

In September this year, Turkey, Pakistan, and Azerbaijan have strengthened their military cooperation by conducting joint military drills in Baku, the capital city of Azerbaijan.

According to the official statement, the exercise was known as the “Three Brothers- 2021,” and was conducted with the aim of “further strengthening the existing ties between the three armies and helping them find new ways to fight terrorism in the region.”

Lt. Gen. Hikmat Mirzayev, Azerbaijan’s special forces commander, said during the inauguration ceremony that “cooperation between the three countries was at the highest level and important measures were being taken to further strengthen relations to ensure the security of the region and its people”.

Pakistan and Turkey provided military support to Azerbaijan during the 44+ days long Second Karabakh War in 2020, when Azerbaijan fought against Armenian armed forces.

Image credit: Eurasian Times