TAQNIA Defense and Security Technologies (DST), a subsidiary of Saudi Development and Investment Company and Aselsan, a Turkish Armed Forces Foundation Company, signed a 50:50 Joint Venture (JV) agreement to establish a defense electronics company in the Kingdom. Through the agreed investments, the JV Company will establish a state of the art facility for the design, development, manufacturing and sales of Radar, Electronic Warfare and Electro-Optic technologies to serve the needs of the Kingdom and the region.

The agreement was signed in Riyadh between DST and Aselsan during the opening ceremony of the Saudi Armed Forces Exhibition (AFED). Dr. Hamad Alyousefi, CEO of DST and Mr. Mustafa Murat Şeker, Chairman of the Board of Directors for Aselsan signed the agreement. His Royal Highness Prince Dr. Turki Bin Saud Bin Mohammed Al-Saud, President of KACST and Chairman of the Board of Directors for TAQNIA along with Prof. İsmail Demir, the Undersecretary for Defense Industries for the Republic of Turkey witnessed the signing of the agreement.

Dignitaries present during the signing ceremony included the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Minister of Defense, Chief of Staff, Turkish Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and a number of other high-ranking officials from both sides.

His Royal Highness Prince Dr. Turki Bin Saud Bin Mohammed Al-Saud commented on signing the agreement that; “Through this joint venture we are investing to establish a world-class facility which will lead to nurturing local talent and supporting economic growth and diversification in the Kingdom. This important defense partnership will have a positive impact on the Kingdom’s technological innovation capabilities.”

Prof. İsmail Demir stated that; “This agreement is aligned with our strategic collaboration to strengthen military, economic and investment cooperation between the two countries and will contribute to maintaining the stability, peace and security in the region.”