Egypt and Türkiye have signed a memorandum of understanding to jointly manufacture a Turkish-made combat drone, in a fresh sign of deepening defense cooperation between the two former regional rivals.
The agreement, signed in Cairo on Tuesday, brings together Egypt’s state-owned Arab Organization for Industrialization (AOI) and Türkiye’s defense electronics and aerospace company Havelsan, the Turkish defense news website SavunmaSanayii reported.
Under the deal, the two sides will co-produce Havelsan’s vertical take-off and landing drone (VTOL-UAV) at Egypt’s Kader Factory for Developed Industries, which is overseen by the AOI. The move aims to localize drone technology in Egypt in line with the country’s 2030 sustainable development strategy, the AOI said in a statement.
AOI chairman Mokhtar Abdel Latif said the partnership would strengthen local manufacturing, bring in advanced technologies, and help Egypt meet domestic needs while opening export channels to African and Arab markets.
Havelsan chief executive Mehmet Akif Nacar said the company looked forward to sharing its expertise in unmanned systems and expanding cooperation into other industrial fields.
The VTOL-UAV is designed for reconnaissance and surveillance in complex environments, equipped with artificial intelligence systems for real-time data analysis. It is intended for missions such as border monitoring and intelligence gathering.
Havelsan, one of Türkiye’s leading defense firms, also produces the Baha drone and the Barkan unmanned ground vehicle. In March, it signed a separate agreement with the Kader factory to co-produce unmanned ground vehicles in Egypt.
The deal comes as defense ties between Cairo and Ankara warm after more than a decade of strained relations. The two countries held their first high-level military dialogue in Ankara in May, agreeing to meet annually.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan later revived the Egypt-Türkiye Strategic Council during bilateral summits in Ankara and Cairo this year, pledging to expand cooperation, including in defense production.
