MILGEM project

The Turkish Navy has officially welcomed four new additions to its fleet in a ceremony held in the northwestern province of Yalova.

The ceremony, attended by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, celebrated the delivery of the new naval platforms. Among the notable additions is the TCG Derya, now the largest warship in the fleet after the TCG Anadolu.

Türkiye's fifth warship TCG Istanbul has embarked on its maiden voyage in the Marmara Sea, the Defense Ministry announced on June 22.

A three-week joint military exercise involving Turkish and Pakistani special forces ended on Feb. 20.

The closing ceremony of the drill ATATÜRK-XI 2021 was held at the Pakistani military's Special Service headquarters in Tarbela, northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkwa province, which borders neighboring Afghanistan, said a statement from the Pakistan Army.

Turkey's president said on Jan. 23 Turkey is among the 10 countries that can design, build, and maintain its own warship, and the country's navy will be in a "very strong position" with five major projects in the coming five years.

Turkey aims to build the country's first frigate with mostly indigenous resources as part of its national warship program MILGEM.

Known as the Istanbul-class frigate, the first frigate is aimed to be constructed with 75% indigenous resources, compared to Ada-class corvettes built with 72% indigenous resources, according to information obtained by Anadolu Agency's correspondent.

Turkey has nearly completed a project to make the country's first frigate as part of its national warship program MİLGEM.

MİLGEM's fifth vessel is being built under the Defense Industries Presidency and the prime contracting of leading defense company STM.

TCG Kınalıada, the fourth ship of the MİLGEM project -- a Turkish national warship program -- will be handed over to the Turkish Navy at a commissioning ceremony in Istanbul on Sept. 29.

Milgem is STM's flagship project

Turkey's flourishing indigenous arms industry has defied a "hidden embargo" on the country for the last 15 years, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on July 3, signaling new projects in the sector.

The $110-billion weapons sales deal that US President Trump signed during his visit to Saudi Arabia has knocked Turkish shipyards aiming to export Corvette-class vessels from the MILGEM (National Ship) program to Saudi Arabia into a spin.