While the West disarms, Turkey is busy arming itself

(Turkey) Last May, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan visited Greece and asked them to cut military spending so that peace could flourish between the two countries and so, ultimately, they could both save money.

Admirable, don't you think? And promotes the message of peace which Muslims the world over are renowned for. Well, here is something the Turks didn't mention when they talked about peace in our time last May.

Turkey is currently running with a program to build its own attack helicopter - TAI/AgustaWestland T-129 - of which it has plans to purchase 60. Greece currently owns 29 AH64 Apache gunships.

Turkey bought 339 German Leopard 2A4 tanks in 2005 and is has set in motion a tender to build 1,000 new Advanced Battle Tanks - Altay - which is based on the current South Korean tank, the K2 Black Panther.

Turkey is currently down to purchase the F35 Lighting. However, of late, Turkey has expresed a desire to pull out of the F35 program and go it alone and build its own 5th generation aircraft.

Turkey is currently looking into building a couple of aircraft carriers.

Turkey is also currently building its own advanced UAV - TAI Anka - of which the Anka-B (TIHA-B) will be an armed version.

As well as those, Turkey is building APCs, mobile rocket launchers and completely re-equipping the navy with frigates, assault docks, tank landing craft, and submarines.

So much for defence cuts then.

Source: Eye on the World