Supplies from Turkey will be critical to the production of 155-caliber ammunition.
The United States is in talks to increase its purchases of explosives from Turkey to boost production of artillery shells as allies try to deliver desperately needed ammunition to Ukraine, Bloomberg reports, citing officials familiar with the talks.
It is noted that Turkish supplies of trinitrotoluene, known as TNT, and nitroguanidine, which is used as a fuel, will be critical to the production of 155mm ammunition to NATO standards – potentially tripling production.
Journalists say the two-year war in Ukraine has sparked a surge in global demand for ammunition, with Western allies scrambling to supply Kyiv to replenish their own depleted stocks. The surge in demand has led to a backlog of global orders and strained defense supply chains, especially for components such as TNT.
At the same time, Turkey is already on track to become the largest seller of artillery shells to the United States this year.
The article points out that the agreement with Ankara also exposes the fragile balance between NATO allies, relations between which have been strained by the Russian invasion and Turkey’s months-long blockade of Sweden’s entry into the alliance.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan plans to visit the White House on May 9 for the first time since President Joe Biden took office as both leaders forge military ties. Turkey’s approval of Sweden’s NATO membership this year cleared the way for Washington to sign an agreement to sell Ankara $23 billion in US F-16 warplanes, missiles and bombs.
The ammunition partnership will build on this: In late February, the Pentagon said it had awarded a contract to General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems to build three 155mm projectile metal parts production lines in Texas, including with Turkish subcontractors. The Mesquite, Texas plant is scheduled to start up in June.
Turkish defense company Repkon’s production lines are expected to produce about 30% of all US-made 155mm artillery shells by 2025. In addition, the Ministry of Defense has purchased 116,000 rounds of ammunition from Turkey’s Arca Defense for delivery this year, with further purchases expected in the near future.
The U.S. and European efforts are part of a race to catch up with Moscow, whose war machine has allowed it to produce or buy an estimated 4 million munitions this year. In contrast, the EU plans to triple production of artillery shells to about 1.4 million units.
Demand for weapons
German tank parts manufacturer Renk reported a record high number of orders. The Bavarian manufacturer of gearboxes and transmissions for tanks and frigates, 70% of whose revenue comes from military orders, reported an increase in orders in 2023 by almost a third, to 1.3 billion euros.
The European Union has allocated more than 130 million euros in funding to the German defense concern Rheinmetall, which wants to build a plant in Ukraine, to increase ammunition production.
