France’s defense ministry has recognized Turkey’s rapid ascent in the global arms market, citing record-breaking growth in exports driven by drone sales and sustained investment in the country’s defense industry, according to its latest annual report to parliament.
The 2024 report on French arms exports said Turkey “continues to invest massively in the development of its defense industry,” noting that its exports “reached a new record in 2024 with around 80 percent growth compared to 2023, supported largely by several drone export contracts.”
Turkey’s defense and aerospace exports totaled about $5.5 billion in 2024, up from $3.1 billion the previous year, according to Turkish government data — a surge that places the country among the world’s fastest-growing arms exporters.
“Turkey is in a similar dynamic to South Korea,” the French report said, describing Ankara’s performance as “one of the most spectacular progressions recorded among the top ten global exporters over the past decade.”
Citing figures from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), the report noted that Turkey ranked 11th globally in defense exports during the 2020–2024 period, with sales increasing by more than 100 percent compared to 2015–2019. Turkey’s share of global arms exports nearly doubled during that time, from around 0.8 percent to 1.7 percent.
France’s own arms exports reached €21.6 billion ($22.7 billion) in new orders in 2024, the second-highest annual figure on record after 2022. European customers accounted for about 60 percent of those orders, reflecting surging regional demand since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Globally, the five largest exporters — the United States, France, Russia, China and Germany — accounted for about 72 percent of arms transfers between 2020 and 2024. While US and French exports increased, shipments from Russia, China and Germany declined.