The German government has still not decided whether to allow sales of the Leopard tank to Turkey, but a Turkish company has disclosed that it will soon start exporting tank tracks to Germany for the same machines.
Jantsa Chairman Sefik Cercioglu said his company would export tank tracks to Germany for its Leopard tanks.
The firm produces 600,000 hubs annually of 900 different types, including high quality tank tracks that have been exported to the United States for two years, and to Egypt for 10. He said the company had signed an agreement to export tank tracks to a German track-producing firm that had previously exported tank tracks to Turkey."
We produce high quality hubs and tracks used in the defense industry. In the coming days we will export more hubs and tracks, particularly for the European defense industry. We aim to be a major force around the world in this sector."
Cercioglu said: "We export tank tracks to a total of 42 countries, including the United States and Egypt. Our export income is $7 million annually, of which $1 million comes from tracks and hubs produced for the defense industry."
Cercioglu continued that in order to meet the demand they would expand their production capacity by half, to 900,000 units per year. Pointing out that the Turkish defense industry used to import tracks and hubs from Germany for many years he stated: "We have been meeting all the demands of the Turkish defense industry for a year. Now we will export to a firm that used to supply hubs and tracks for the Turkish defense industry."
The company also specializes in producing hubs and tracks for armored personnel carriers and especially mine-clearing tanks. Cercioglu said: "We specialize in defense industry vehicles with proven quality to the most fastidious buyers around the world. Our aim is to increase our market share in Europe and the United States." – (Albawaba-MEBG)
