The British government said on October 27 that the UK and Turkey had signed an export agreement worth up to £8 billion (about $11 billion) for the "Typhon" fighter aircraft.The British Defense Ministry called the arms deal "the largest export order for a generation" and Turkish President Erdogan said the move was "a new symbol of strategic relations between two close allies."
01
Britain is happy: warplane production line saved
The fact that the British are so happy shows that the "gold value" of this large arms order is not low.
According to the British side, the export of this batch of aircraft to the country not only could preserve 20,000 jobs in the country, but also directly saved the Warton plant "Typhon" production line in Lancashire.
Foreign media said that due to the lack of overseas orders, the production line was shut down in July this year.
The Warton Plant, the only fighter aircraft assembly base in the UK, once completely shut down, or thousands of aviation technicians were lost, greatly damaged the British military industry.
According to the US "Aviation" website,"Typhoon" is a fourth-generation multi-role fighter jet jointly developed by Britain, Germany, Italy and Spain, so it is also called a European fighter jet.
Since it was put into use in 2003, more than 600 Typhoon fighters of different batches and models have been produced one after another, and they are still the main fighters of multinational air forces in Europe and the Middle East.
02
Earthwork "small abacus": introducing advanced aviation technology
It is worth noting that Turkey has ordered 20 Typhoons from the UK alone, and the market price of these fighter jets is less than $3 billion.
So where are the $8 billion that Turkey is spending?
Foreign media said that in addition to 20 fighter jets, Turkey also plans to purchase a large number of "Meteor" and "Aslam" air-to-air missiles, as well as airborne targeting pods for launching precision-guided munitions to the ground and the sea.
In addition, the British side will take on the task of training Turkish pilots and ground personnel, and transfer to the Turkish side some technology, so that it has the ability to upgrade the "Typhon" aerospace equipment and deep maintenance of the aircraft in its own country.
There are also reports that several Turkish defense companies will participate in the "Typhon" manufacturing process, and the British side has promised its mission share will gradually rise to 45%.
Therefore, there is a saying that Turkey's "drunken man's intention is not wine". On the surface, it is buying airplanes, but what it is really eyeing is Europe's advanced military aviation technology.
03
Deep-seated reasons: pressure from opponents + ambition of great powers
World Bank data shows that Turkey's defense budget in 2025 will be approximately US$26 billion. The country is determined to spend more than 40% of its military procurement as a "typhoon". In addition to introducing technology, what further considerations are there?
First, military pressure from regional competitors.
Reuters said that due to complicated historical entanglements and real conflicts of interests, Turkey has two major regional competitors: Israel and Greece.
In particular, Israel, which recently relied on the F-35 and F-15 such as the U.S. advanced fighter jets, launched airstrikes on the Middle East countries such as Iran, Lebanon, Syria, Qatar, so that Turkey felt the "high pressure."
The military power of Greece, which was weaker than that of Turkey, is also planned to deploy F-35s in 2027, which undoubtedly raises further concerns, prompting it to accelerate the modernization of air force equipment.
Second, it is due to Turkey's great power ambition.
The U.S. think tank RAND Corporation said that the Turkish army, with 400,000 troops, is considered to be the second largest armed force within NATO after the U.S. military.
According to the report of the American think tank, relying on this trump card, Turkey has been "trying to establish regional hegemony" since the Arab Spring in 2011.
In order to support this strategic vision, the Turkish side first sought to introduce the US-made F-35, and then launched the domestic five-generation self-research project, which reproduces the glory of the past.
04
Multi-faceted game: the internal contradictions of NATO
Perhaps because it involves too many areas, after the announcement of this arms purchase news, it immediately attracted much attention.
According to the “Turkish Today” website, former Israeli prime minister Rapid warned his country’s top level that Turkey’s purchase of European fighter jets “is aimed at matching the air force with Israel, which is a dangerous trend.”
The US bimonthly magazine "National Interest" stated that as early as 2019, the US kicked Turkey out of the F-35 project in retaliation for the country's purchase of the Russian S-400 air defense system.
During the transit, despite the easing of U.S.-Turkish relations, foreign media believes that Turkey's efforts to regain the F-35 are either failed.
The main reason is that neither the United States nor Israel want the monopoly of "only the Israeli military equipped with F-35s in the Middle East" to be broken.
Turkey is aware of this, on the one hand, soften the body and reduce the requirements, negotiate with the United States to buy 40 F-16 upgraded fighter jets, and on the other hand turn to Europe, quickly signed the "Typhon" order.
Foreign media also disclosed that Germany originally opposed the arms deal, but after seeing Turkey's position on the Gaza issue, it turned to "give the green light."
According to some analysts, the arms trade transmitted important signals, not only indicating that Turkey and Europe are struggling to get rid of the "American trap", to strengthen national defense autonomy, but also highlighted the intricate contradictions and differences within NATO.
Source: China News Network