Canada plans to use a government agency in Türkiye that manages the country's defense industry and the supply of military technology as a model as it works to build up its own domestic arms sector, a report said Friday.
The Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB) serves as the primary defense procurement authority to fulfill the technological needs of Turkish security forces utilizing domestic resources.
The report comes amid Prime Minister Mark Carney's visit to Türkiye, the first bilateral visit by a Canadian leader, as Ottawa seeks new global trade partners to reduce reliance on the United States.
NATO allies upgraded their relations to a "strategic partnership" on Thursday following talks between Carney and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Ankara, focusing on trade and investment, defense, security and energy.
In Istanbul on Friday, Carney said Ottawa is "in need of Turkish expertise" to strengthen its defenses and reduce reliance on foreign military systems. He said Canada was interested in both Turkish military technology and joint industrial partnerships.
Türkiye has agreed to join Canada's Defense Security and Resilience Bank as one of 10 founding member nations of Carney's multilateral "middle powers" bank.
The bank's purpose is to bolster the defense of like-minded allied nations by raising up to 100 billion pounds ($134 billion) in cheap financing.
'Lot to learn'
Carney's government wants to bring about strategic cooperation between Canadian and Turkish companies in production, innovation and technology transfer, Anadolu Agency (AA) said on Friday, citing defense industry sources. They said he drew particular attention to Türkiye's expertise in space and aviation.
During the visit, Carney stressed Türkiye produces around 80% of its own defense needs domestically, which he said is not the case in Canada. “We have a lot to learn," he noted.
He added that Canada is in a position where it needs Türkiye's defense industry expertise more and described reaching a local-content rate above 80% as a desirable policy goal for his government, the report said.
In an earlier interview, Carney said Canada intends both to run joint defense projects with Türkiye and to buy Turkish products. He pointed to Türkiye's innovation and technology base, especially in unmanned systems.
What SSB does
The SSB organizes nearly all areas of Türkiye's defense industry, including localization, production, innovation, procurement, regulation, public-private cooperation and corporate financing.
It centralizes coordination between the armed forces and public and private companies, which allows quick decisions and rapid delivery of requirements. It is said to be a structure with no equal in the world.
The agency supports national design and domestic production, introduces rules to raise firms' export earnings, and aims to phase out dependence on foreign suppliers for critical systems. It oversees an ecosystem of more than 4,500 companies, guided by technology-acquisition obligations and capability-building policies.
Poland's deputy prime minister and defense minister, Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz, has also praised the agency. He said earlier that Poland wanted to adopt a similar model, because the SSB not only buys and produces for its own needs but also exports and promotes exports.
Part of push to cut reliance on Washington
Canada's interest fits Carney's strategy of reducing dependence on the United States for security and supplies.
Canada's government set up a Defense Investment Agency last year to cut bureaucratic delays in defense procurement. It also announced a goal of raising the domestic industry's share of defense spending to 70% over the next 10 years.
The two countries signed a Defense Sector Partnerships memorandum of understanding on Thursday. SSB head Haluk Görgün said it reflects a commitment to expand cooperation between two NATO allies.
On Friday, Carney met senior executives of Aselsan, known for electro-optical, radar and avionics systems, and Baykar, known for unmanned aerial systems and autonomous software.