Turkish leader unveils ambitious 2025 defence projects including national submarine, air defence destroyer

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has addressed the defence issues in his speech following the first meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers in 2025 at the Presidential Complex in Ankara.

"We said Bismillah [In the name of Allah] to the Steel Dome project, which has been developed locally and nationally. The SİPER Block-1 system has been inducted into our arsenal. We have decided to strengthen our stock of missiles with a range of 800 kilometres and beyond, and to accelerate our programme for developing missiles with ranges of 2,000 kilometres and beyond," he stated, Caliber.Az reports via Turkish media. 

"Last year, we launched, advanced, or initiated numerous defence projects, and listing them all here could take hours. We hope that in 2025, we will add even more," the president stated.

He went on to highlight that, as part of the MILGEM project, Türkiye has designed and built the first corvettes and frigates entirely domestically. In addition to the five ships already in service, the construction of seven more MILGEM frigates is currently underway.

The president also mentioned that the TF-2000 air defence destroyer at a shipyard in Istanbul, as well as a national submarine at a shipyard in Gölcük are being built. Furthermore, work is progressing on MUGEM national aircraft carrier. President Erdogan emphasised that the completion of these projects will elevate Türkiye to the next level. 

"We will continue making our efforts decisively, together with all stakeholders in our defence industry, for the sake of Türkiye —a country that inspires confidence in our friends and fear in our enemies," he added.

The MUGEM project was first unveiled publicly in February 2024, when President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan visited the Design Project Office at the Istanbul Naval Shipyard. Since then, the project has garnered widespread attention. 

In April 2024, journalists were given a behind-the-scenes tour at the shipyard, where Turkish naval officials shared updates on the project, including details about the ship design and capabilities. MUGEM features an optimized hull form, developed using a multi-dimensional optimization tool, which ensures excellent seakeeping, stability, and high maneuverability.

By Naila Huseynova