Turkish defence giant to close 2025 with record-setting value in export deals

Aselsan, Türkiye’s leading defence manufacturer, is on track to close 2025 with its strongest export performance to date, having secured more than $2 billion in international contracts and significantly expanded its presence abroad.

Ranked 42nd on the Defence News Top 100 list, the company is targeting a place among the top 30 by focusing on higher value-added exports. This push has been underpinned by a growing pipeline of overseas orders that has elevated Aselsan’s global standing, according to reporting by Daily Sabah.

Strong momentum in 2025

Throughout 2025, Aselsan signed a series of major contracts, generating $1.4 billion in outstanding orders from international sales, based on its recently released nine-month financial results. This represented a 171% increase compared with the same period last year. About a quarter of all new contracts signed during this time stemmed from direct or indirect overseas sales.

By the end of September, export contracts accounted for 14.2% of Aselsan’s total outstanding orders. The company’s international business has shown steady growth over recent years, rising from $267 million in 2021 to $415 million in 2022, $601 million in 2023, and surpassing $1 billion in 2024.

The strong performance continued beyond the nine-month reporting period, with Aselsan signing an additional $564 million in export contracts during the final months of the year.

Among the standout deals was a $410 million agreement with Poland for the direct sale of electronic warfare systems, one of the largest single overseas contracts in the company’s history. 

In total, the value of export contracts secured in 2025 has reached $2 billion. As these orders begin to feed into turnover, Aselsan expects export revenues to approach $1 billion in 2026.

Evolving export portfolio

Aselsan is aiming to raise the share of exports in its outstanding orders from around 8–10% in the 2020–2022 period to 20–25% over the medium term, a goal supported by the volume and scale of contracts signed this year.

The company’s export portfolio has also shifted significantly. Between 2015 and 2019, overseas sales were dominated by radios, electro-optical systems, and spare parts. This began to change in 2020–2023, when unmanned aerial vehicle payloads and smart munitions became more prominent.

The Turkish defence giant has various affiliate branches globally, with the ownership of those located in Azerbaijan, Malaysia, Ukraine and the Latin American outlet fully retained by the parent company. 

In 2024 and 2025, the value added by Aselsan’s exports increased further, driven by products in electronic warfare, air defence, and system modernisation. Europe and NATO member states have emerged as the fastest-growing markets, with export agreements signed over the past two years accounting for a substantial portion of the firm’s outstanding orders.

The recent Poland deal, in particular, is seen as a milestone, underscoring Aselsan’s expanding footprint in Europe and its growing role as a supplier of advanced defence technologies to allied countries.

By Nazrin Sadigova