The main duties and responsibilities fulfilled by the Turkish Coast Guard Command are:


• To conduct maritime search and rescue operations.


• To provide maritime security and safety within the maritime jurisdiction zones of Turkey.


• To protect marine resources and to prevent pollution at the surrounding seas of Turkey.


• At the time of war, to defend the country from the sea as an integral part of the Turkish Naval Forces Command.


Our motto is “ALWAYS READY TO RESPOND CALLS FOR HELP AT SEA.”


The Turkish Coast Guard surface and air assets are located widespread throughout the approximately 8,500 km long coastal lines of the country and perform their activities under the operational control of the Regional Coast Guard Commands.


Regular sea patrolling activities of the surface assets are planned by the Regional Commands and also supported by helicopters and mobile radars. In addition to such patrolling activities, warnings and calls received are responded promptly by the coast guard units.


Major activities and operations conducted by the Turkish Coast Guard units are as follows:


• Carrying out maritime search and rescue operations primarily to save lives of victims of any incident at sea.


• Provision of maritime evacuation and transportation assistance in response to emergency medical assistance requests of any person/vessel/ship at sea.


• Shadowing and securing hazardous cargoes carrying ships during their passage through the Turkish Straits.


• Monitoring and controlling all kinds of suspected ships within the responsibility areas.


• Controlling sea vessels for their convenience for maritime security and safety. In case of any misconduct or deficiency, these vessels are handed over to the public prosecutor’s office.


• Taking necessary measures in order to prevent all kinds of maritime smuggling activities as well as illegal migration attempts.





• Conducting regular inspections of fishing vessels and fish farms in respect to the existing fisheries acts. In case of any misconduct or deficiency, violators are convicted and fined.


• Monitoring marine pollution cases and imposing fines upon the violators due to their misconducts.


Turkey is also a contracting-party to the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT) since the year 2003. Within the framework of ICCAT scheme of joint international inspection, the Turkish Coast Guard Command is authorized to control blue-fin tuna fishing activities and towing vessels in the areas defined by the ICCAT Convention. For example, during the last 6 months of 2010; around 40 fishing and towing vessels have been inspected and the results were reported to ICCAT Secretary by our units.


Defence Turkey: Our nation is surrounded by seas on three sides that geopolitically is located in a very important region. Accordingly, the Coast Guard Command has the mission and functions that cover a very wide region. In conjuction with this, would you tell us the organizational structure and future planning activities of the Coast Guard Command?





The Turkish Coast Guard Command functions under the authority of the Ministry of Interior during peace time and under the command of the Turkish Naval Forces Command during the crisis situations and at the time of war.


The Turkish Coast Guard Command main Headquarters’ is located in Ankara. There are seven major subordinate units of the Turkish Coast Guard Command; The Black Sea Region Command located in Samsun, The Marmara Sea and Turkish Straits Region Command and also The Coast Guard Logistic Support Command located in Istanbul, The Aegean Sea Region Command and The Coast Guard Air Command located in Izmir, The Coast Guard Training and Education Command located in Antalya and finally The Mediterranean Region Command located in Mersin. Additionally, there are several Coast Guard Group Commands which are subordinates of the Regional Commands.


The Turkish Coast Guard Command carries out its’ main mission and functions with the state-of-the-art surface and air assets and mobile maritime surveillance systems.


* The surface units in the inventory of the Turkish Coast Guard Command are comprised of; “KAAN-15” class, “KAAN-19” class, “KAAN-29” class and “KAAN-33” class fast intervention coast guard ships, “SAR-33” class and “SAR-35” class cost guard ships, “Type 80” class coast guard ships, “Turkish-Type” coast guard ships, “Type 70” class coast guard ships, “Picket” class coast guard ships as well as Coastal SAR Boats and Coastal Safety And Security Crafts.


* In addition, the air assets in the inventory of the Turkish Coast Guard Command are comprised of the CASA CN-235 class maritime aircraft and the AB-412 EP class maritime helicopters.





The Turkish Coast Guard Command cooperates closely with other authorities and organizations at both national and international level within the framework of assigned duties and responsibilities with reference to 50 different laws and acts regarding environment, marine pollution, fisheries, search and rescue and counter-smuggling. In this context, the Turkish Coast Guard Command conducts duties and operations in close cooperation with 9 different Ministries and 13 different State Institutions in respect to maritime law enforcement issues.


In order to enhance the existing availabilities and operational capabilities regarding newly emerging threats and risks of maritime domain, several modernization projects are being carried out that involve procurement of state-of-the-art coast guard surface and air assets as well as maritime surveillance systems.


Defence Turkey: Admiral, under the Coast Guard Command’s authority of sea areas, avoiding illegal activities such as human and goods trafficking and terror threats and, in addition to this, on the subject of search and rescue operations and in protecting underwater life and non-living things what type of surveillance and activities took place in 2010?





The Turkish Coast Guard Command continues to respond to any emergencies at sea and fight against all kinds of illegal activities with all its efforts on a 7 days and 24 hours basis.


At this point, I would like to provide you with some statistical figures regarding main operations and activities conducted by the Turkish Coast Guard Command in the year 2010.


* Around 400 search and rescue operations were carried out during which almost 1,800 survivors including illegal immigrants were rescued alive from the sea.


* With respect to urgent maritime evacuation and transportation assistance requests of the governmental bodies especially of the Turkish Ministry of Health and also in response to emergency medical assistance requests of any person/vessel/ship at sea; the Turkish Coast Guard surface and air assets conducted almost 90 maritime medical evacuation operations during which a total number of 91 casualties and patients in need of medical assistance have been transferred safely to the nearest shore based medical aid institutions.


* Over 1,100 ships with hazardous cargoes passing through the Turkish Straits were shadowed and secured.


* Around 39,000 sea vessels in different types were inspected for their availability regarding maritime security and safety. Nearly 5,000 of these vessels were handed over to the public prosecutors’ office due to their misconducts or deficiencies.


* Approximately 1,250 illegal immigrants and 35 organizers were apprehended.


* Due to their illegal fishing activities 2,330 persons/ships were fined with a total amount of 4,2 million TL penalty fees.


* Around 150 fishery farms were also inspected pursuant to the existing fisheries and environmental acts and 20 of them were fined due to their misconducts or inefficiencies.


* Around 130 sea vessels causing marine pollution were fined with a total amount of 750,000 TL penalty fees. Also around 90 other kinds of marine pollution cases identified by our units were reported to the other relevant government agencies in order to take legal action.





To protect the maritime cultural and natural heritage of our country, the Turkish Coast Guard units regularly check the activities of the diving centers who organize diving events and if any misconducts or inefficiencies be detected, penal charges are imposed upon the individuals/companies, pursuant to the law on the protection of cultural and natural assets and the law on misdemeanors.


Additionally, in the context of fighting against smuggling activities at sea a total amount of 900,000 liters of fuel-oil, 600,000 packs of cigarettes, 7,300 kilograms of tea, 500 bottles of alcoholic beverages and 1,700 pieces of clothing were seized at sea by the Turkish Coast Guard Units.


Defence Turkey: Admiral, it has been put forth that in terms of illegal immigration to EU nations Turkey is a transit country. Related to this matter, what type of strategic activities is the Coast Guard Command undertaking with neighboring countries and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Coast Guard Command and in the period ahead what joint work is planned related to this subject?





As it is well known, one of the most vital world-wide problems of our era is the illegal migration. Some researches point out that the waves of the global migration and its effects are so devastating that 21st century can be named as “The age of migration”.


Today, illegal migration problem is mainly emanating from the differences in the level of prosperity between the western and the eastern states, regional and ethnic problems, rapid population growth in eastern states and on the contrary aging population in western states, instabilities resulting from “failed states” and adverse effects of global climate and finally the European Union’s demand for cheap labor and migration policies that encouraging illegal migration.


In this regard, hundreds of thousands of people who have no hope or nothing to lose in their home countries, mainly resulting from adverse economic and social conditions as well as long lasting political turmoil and instabilities, illegally immigrate to prosperous Europe and North America, moving in the south-north axis in Africa and in the east-west axis in Asia just to reach a heaven that they will feed themselves.


On the other hand, today, Turkey has an important geo-strategic position and a significant geopolitical situation due to her unique geographical position which constitutes a natural bridge connecting the economically developed western countries and the underdeveloped eastern states. Therefore, especially since the beginning of the 21st century Turkey has been adversely affected by the illegal migration problem as a transit country. Turkey is also becoming a target country as its domestic economy improves and the life-quality increases.


Within the framework of the precautionary measures taken by the Turkish Coast Guard Command in context of fighting against illegal migration; our surface assets conduct regular surveillance and patrol missions in their responsibility areas, especially at critical points which are most commonly used as gathering points by organizers and the illegal migrants. These missions are also supported by the coast guard helicopters and the mobile radars to provide 24 hour basis coverage.





In terms of fighting against illegal activities; no country could be expected to overcome this issue by its own measures, thus all countries should work in coordination and cooperation regionally and globally as a whole to more effectively tackle with and suppress this worldwide problem. In this context, the Turkish Coast Guard Command maintains friendly relations and close cooperation with the relevant maritime law enforcement authorities of the littoral states of the Black Sea, the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, respectively.


As per the Black Sea Region, Turkish Coast Guard Command pioneered the establishment of “The Black Sea Littoral State Border/Coast Guard Cooperation Forum (BSCF)” among the Littoral States’ Border/Coast Guard Authorities. The BSCF functions as a multi-national regional cooperation platform to attain a wide range of objectives including collective provision of maritime safety and security, execution of joint search and rescue operations, protection of marine environment, prevention of illegal fishing, joint training on the issues related with coast guard missions and development of common communication channels for exchange of relevant information.


Today one may easily argue that the regional initiative of BSCF has allowed the Black Sea to become one of the most secure and safest seas in the world.


Moreover, the Turkish Coast Guard Command maintains friendly relations and carries out bilateral cooperation activities in the field of coast guard with relevant Border/Coast Guard Authorities of Russian Federation, Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria, Georgia, Italy, Albania, United Arab Emirates, Croatia, Greece, Syria, Egypt, Yemen, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and U.S.A.


Under the framework of these bilateral relations; annual cooperation meetings, high level official visits, mutual port calls and personnel exchange programs are in progress in order to share mutual experiences and practices as well as to improve common perspectives and new collaboration initiatives with respect to coast guard matters.


On the other hand the Turkish Coast Guard Command signed a “Bilateral cooperation and technical assistance protocol in the field of coast guard” with the Coast Guard Command of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus on 11th October 2009.


Defence Turkey: Admiral, Turkey as a peninsula with 8,444 km of coastal border serves as a bridge between Asia, Europe and Central Asia. In summary, the Coast Guard Command has a wide area of responsibilities. Within this wide area of authority in terms of maintaining security and safety the use of air power in an effective manner has become an important capability. We know that you have made great strides in the last decade. What can you tell us on the latest situation on the Naval Forces Command and Coast Guard Command’s MELTEM-2 Project and as of now the sea and air fleet of the Coast Guard Command?





Especially within the last 10 years period, the air assets availability of the Turkish Coast Guard Command has significantly been enhanced with procurement of state-of-the-art maritime air platforms. Currently, the Turkish Coast Guard Air Command located at Adnan Menderes Airport in Izmir, the Turkish Coast Guard Air Group Commands located in Antalya and Samsun, and the Turkish Coast Guard helipads located in Amasra and Mersin provinces enable us to deploy our air assets widespread throughout the coastal lines of the country. The widespread deployment of our air platforms also provides us with flexibility of improved surveillance and faster intervention capability for all kinds of incidents and emergencies at sea.


In regards to our air assets availability; the CASA CN-235 class maritime surveillance aircrafts which were commissioned between the years of 2002-2004 are currently subjected to a comprehensive modernization process in which state-of-the-art mission devices and navigation equipments are being integrated to these aircrafts under the scope of the joint project -namely MELTEM-2- in cooperation with the Turkish Naval Forces Command.


Modernization process of the first aircraft was successfully completed and is currently in France where she will be certified for flight safety. The modernization activities of the other two aircrafts are still in progress at the Turkish Aerospace Industries Inc. (TAI) company in Turkey. The project is due to be completed by the end of 2012.


Upon completion of this comprehensive modernization project CASA CN-235 class coast guard aircrafts will be capable to perform the following duties:


* In the scope of detecting and suppressing the sea pollution and the other illegal activities at sea, aircrafts will be tasked as the primary surveillance units on the sensitive areas and once they detect the exact position of the incident they will act as a reporting unit and will provide periodical reports for decision makers.


* In search and rescue operations, first of all the aircrafts will be tasked by use of rapid tasking procedures as the primary search units for detecting the victims. Upon the detection the aircrafts will then localize them by dropping smoke markers in the vicinity area and will report the location of the survivors to the relevant command and control authority. After reporting of aircrafts, SAR helicopters and surface units will proceed to the localized area and will rescue the survivors from the sea.


Besides, we employ AB-412 EP class maritime helicopters in our air assets inventory. These helicopters are mainly employed for supporting maritime search and rescue operations as well as detection of marine pollution cases, illegal fishing activities and all kinds of illegal activities at sea.


Additionally, in order to enhance our air operations capabilities especially in respect to maritime search and rescue operations, it is envisaged to procure 6 multi-purpose coast guard helicopters within the scope of “The Turkish Armed Forces General Purpose Helicopter Procurement Project”.


Defence Turkey: Admiral, would you give us your assessment of the present situation of another project that will enhance the mission of the Coast Guard Command pertaining to the blue waters of our country, the Coastal Surveillance Radar System?





In order to improve our maritime situational awareness capabilities within the surrounding seas of our country, a coastal surveillance radar system project has been devised. So far, the technical specifications of the system have been defined and official documents for the bidding process are prepared. As soon as the budget allocation process is finalized, the bidding process will be commenced by the Under Secretariat for Defense Industries of Turkey in a near future.





The main aim of “Coastal Surveillance Radar System (CSRS) Project” is to form a real time maritime monitoring capability throughout the surrounding seas of Turkey. Upon completion of the project our primary operational requirements such as provision of maritime security and safety, monitoring and control of commercial shipping, prevention of illegal migration at sea, execution of maritime search and rescue operations and protection of marine environment will be satisfactorily met.


CSRS is a multidimensional project. It will combine the data received from already existing Coastal Surveillance Radar System of the Turkish Naval Forces Command and the Vessel Traffic Monitoring System of the Under Secretariat for Maritime Affairs and will also cover the areas those are not within monitoring capability of the aforementioned systems.


Following a comprehensive fusion process to be held in our CSRS Control Center, the compiled maritime picture will be shared with the relevant government agencies on the “need to know” basis.


The CSRS project will be implemented in several phases. In view of our latest mission and operational requirements analysis results, first two phases of the project will be implemented in the Marmara Sea and the Aegean Sea regions respectively, since they are more sensitive to all kinds of illegal activities at sea. The project will also be enlarged to the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea regions in due time.


Defence Turkey: Admiral, we know that the Coast Guard Command has successfully conducted the Search and Rescue Satellite-Aided Tracking system (COSPAS-SARSAT) with the rescue coordination center units since 2005. In addition to this, there is a tendency towards the MEOSAR (Medium Earth Orbit Research and Rescue Satellite-Aided Tracking system.) Turkey actively participates in this project. What type of capabilities will we gain with this project? Would you assess for us the latest point arrived at with this project?





In pursuit of the efforts commenced in 2002 as per utilizing the COSPAS-SARSAT (Cosmicheskaya Sistyema Poiska Avariynich Sudov-Search and Rescue Satellite-Aided Tracking) system, Turkey gained the initial operational capability on 06th October 2005 and the full operational capability on 17th January 2006.


Currently the Turkish Coast Guard Command is capable of monitoring the Rescue Coordination Unit of the system on a 24 hour basis. When a distress signal is received from the system, it is immediately analyzed in our main operations center following which, the nearest available Turkish Coast Guard assets are deployed to the said distress position to conduct search and rescue operation.


The COSPAS-SARSAT system consists of Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and Geostationary (GEO) Satellites and also ground segment equipments which are functioning on receipt of distress signals from the satellites. With use of the existing COSPAS-SARSAT system, detection duration (including the position information) of a distress signal could last up to 90 minutes and the position errors could extend to 5 kilometers in distance.








However, with employment of the new MEOSAR (Medium Earth Orbit Search and Rescue Satellite-Aided Tracking) system, distress signals will be detected shortly after the incident has taken place, additionally the position errors of the signal received will be minimized.


Currently the MEOSAR system is in “Proof of Concept” and “Orbit Validation” phases. Once the space segment is supported with adequate number of satellites, then the system shall reach its’ full operational capability. Within the scope of the project, the total number of satellites in service is planned to be increased up to 36 in year 2015 and up to 60 in year 2019, respectively.


As of today, only 7 countries (USA, Russian Federation, United Kingdom, France, Canada, Brazil and Turkey) in the world have successfully installed the MEOSAR local user terminals. In regards to on-going MEOSAR system installation activities in Turkey, 2 local user terminals were installed at Ankara Esenbo?a International Airport on July 2010. Also, existing systems in MCC (Mission Control Center) and RCC (Rescue Coordination Center) units are modernized to gain capability of receiving distress signals from the 9 existing MEOSAR satellites orbiting in space.


Defence Turkey: Admiral, within the coverage of the modernization of the Coast Guard Command, would you tell us the completed and on-going planned projects? Related to this topic, are plans being made for purchases towards requirements?





As the primary maritime law enforcement agency of the Turkish Republic, the Turkish Coast Guard Command attaches special importance to the principle of continuous progress and in this context it reforms its’ organizational structure and assets to reach a more flexible and effective force availability in accordance with the newly emerging operational needs and the new platforms to be commissioned in the near future.


Additionally, the lessons learned from the past had proved us that having a deterrent and capable Coast Guard can not depend only on the imported platforms, weapons and systems but on the national industrial capacity combined with science and technology.


As it is well known, with the renewed emphasis during the last decade, Turkish defense industry has come to portray a strong presence in the fields of naval shipbuilding and maritime management systems. Turkish defense industry companies are now in a position to compete with their competitors in the international defense market and receive orders from abroad for their state-of-the-art and cost-effective products.


Naturally, possessing a strong national military shipbuilding industry, in addition to a strategic and critical capability also provides a critical contribution to the national economy. In this context, the fact that the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries of Turkey (namely-SSM), has transferred the increasing shipbuilding requests of the Turkish Navy and the Turkish Coast Guard Command projects to the private sector, in particular after the year 2005, resulted in a significant increase in military shipbuilding design and construction capabilities of the Turkish private sector shipyards.


Having these important issues in mind, as the Turkish Coast Guard Command, we feel strong enthusiasm for both continuing our on-going modernization projects and also initiating the new ones. Now, I would like to briefly touch upon our main modernization projects.


Coast Guard Search and Rescue Ships Procurement Project


In order to enhance our search and rescue capabilities especially in open seas (“Blue Waters”), currently four new coast guard search and rescue ships which for the first time possess the features of a 1,700 deadweight tonnage warship are under construction at a Turkish private sector shipyard-namely RMK MARINE Inc. These ships will be fitted with a national command control management system and will be capable to perform their operations uninterruptedly up to high sea states. They will also be able to perform helicopter operations.


The first ship of the project -namely TCSG DOST- was launched at sea on 9th June, 2010 and following the on-going outfitting period she will be in service by the end of 2011. Also, the second ship of the Project -namely TCSG GÜVEN- which was launched at sea on 17 December, 2010 is planned to be commissioned in the second half of 2012. The names of the third and the forth ships of the project are “TCSG UMUT” and “TCSG YA?AM”. The project is due to be completed by the end of 2012.


The ships to be built in the context of the project are to be equipped with state-of-the-art weapons and electronic systems. In this regard, the design and production of the command control management system software, electro-optical director, communications systems, gyro and multi-mission capable operator consoles will be carried out in Turkey.


In addition to maritime search and rescue, these ships will be utilized in fire fighting, environmental pollution protection and smuggling prevention operations.


600 Class Coast Guard Ships Procurement Project


In order to satisfy our existing operational requirements for acquiring medium size coast guard ships which will be capable to perform their duties uninterruptedly especially under adverse sea and weather conditions, the “600 Class Coast Guard Ships Procurement Project” has been initiated.


A total number of 8 ships that will be constructed within the scope of this Project are planned to be commissioned between the years of 2016 and 2023.


80 Class Coast Guard Boats Procurement Project


The other on-going surface assets modernization projects include the procurement of additional “80 class” and “KAAN-19” class coast guard boats. Within the scope of the “80 Class Coast Guard Boats Procurement Project” construction of 16 similar class boats was completed at the Turkish Navy Shipyards and they were delivered to the Turkish Coast Guard Command. This Project is due to be completed in the second half of 2011.


KAAN-19 Class Coast Guard Boats Procurement Project


In scope of the project initiated to procure KAAN-19 class coast guard boats, the first boat of the project was commissioned on 18th September, 2006. The procurement contract related to the construction of 17 additional boats has been signed on 10th November 2010 with a Turkish private sector shipyard-namely YONCA-ONUK JV. This project is due to be completed in 2016.


Multi Purpose Coast Guard Helicopters Procurement Project


In order to enhance our air operations capabilities especially in respect to maritime search and rescue operations, it is envisaged to procure 6 multi-purpose coast guard helicopters within the scope of “The Turkish Armed Forces General Purpose Helicopter Procurement Project”.








The helicopters to be built in context of the project will be capable to perform their operations uninterruptedly in adverse whether conditions and also they will exhibit the main features of extended airborne duration and range, faster cruise speed and more lift capacity for personnel and goods.


Other Main Platform & System Modernization Projects


As I mentioned earlier in detail, we have another on-going air assets modernization project named “MELTEM-2 Project” for improving existing operational capabilities of our CASA CN-235 aircrafts especially for coast guard duties and also the Coastal Surveillance Radar System (CSRS) Project is under process to enhance our maritime situational awareness capability.


On the other hand the Coast Guard Boats Weapon Control Systems Modernization Project- namely “The STAMP Project” is initiated in order to enhance the existing weapon control system capabilities of our coast guard boats. The system provides several advantages such as remote control of the weapons, improved day and night surveillance capability by means of the installed state-of-the-art thermal cameras and advanced fire control system applications. The STAMP System will be installed to all our KAAN-29 and KAAN-33 class coast guard boats by the end of 2016.


Another important modernization project run by the Turkish Coast Guard Command with the aim of enhancing our command & control system effectiveness is the “Turkish Coast Guard Wide Area Digital Secure Communication System –namely “The SAHMUS Project”. In order to attain cost effectiveness, this project is coupled with an on-going project of the Turkish General Command of Gendarmerie -namely “The JEMUS Project”.


The SAHMUS system will allow us to establish uninterrupted voice and data communication in between the operational units at sea and the shore based command and control centers. Additionally, real time monitoring capability for tracking the movements of our surface and air assets will be attained.


The system was first established in 2008 to provide coverage only for the Aegean Sea Region. The said system has enlarged to include the Marmara Sea Region by the end of 2010. It is also planned to integrate the Mediterranean Sea Region and the Western Black Sea Region within the content of the said system by the end of 2012. The project is due to be completed by the end of 2015.





Defence Turkey: Admiral, in the last few years the use of unmanned vehicles has become a vital need. On this subject is their any work on including unmanned sea vehicles to the inventory of the Coast Guard Command and any planned purchase during the period ahead? Would you share us your views with the readers of “Defence Turkey”?





In view of our existing operational requirements, I believe that the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) can effectively be utilized in regards to coast guard duties especially for monitoring and prevention of illegal fishing, detection of marine pollution, fighting against illegal activities at sea and also maritime search and rescue operations, in addition to improve our existing reconnaissance and surveillance capabilities.





Our main area of interest in respect to the maritime UAVs which can be utilized for the coast guard duties are the ones exhibiting the main features of being at the tactical level, being cost effective yet efficient onboard payload with comprehensive detection range capability and also being user friendly in which the UAVs can easily be launched and recovered from our surface assets.


In order to satisfy existing UAV requirements of the Turkish Armed Forces as well as to create and develop critical design and construction capabilities of the national defense industry in related technologies for these vessels “The Turkish Armed Forces Multi Purpose UAV Procurement Project” has been initiated under supervision of the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries of Turkey (namely-SSM) in recent years. Currently, in context of this joint project several feasibility studies are conducted in respect to domestic design and production of the land based and the maritime UAVs.


Depending on the future innovations be emerged regarding the critical design and construction technologies of maritime UAVs in the world market in parallel with necessary progress be achieved in production capabilities of the Turkish national defense industry with respect to “The Turkish Armed Forces Multi Purpose UAV Procurement Project”, the Turkish Coast Guard Command shall envisage to procure coast guard related maritime UAVs within the scope of this joint project which fulfill our requirements I have mentioned before.


Defence Turkey: Admiral, do you have a final message that you would like to convey to the readers of “Defence Turkey”?





In today’s global security environment within the context of the global strive in sharing authority, utmost importance is attached to free usage of “Blue Waters”. Therefore the basic and the main requirement to effectively ensure Turkey’s sovereignty rights and crucial maritime relevance and interests in the surrounding seas in a more effective way have emerged.


This emerging requirement suggests that, being the primary maritime law enforcement agency responsible to attain and maintain maritime security and safety of life within our “Blue Borders”, it is a vital necessity that the scope of the Turkish Coast Guard Command’s tasks are to be broadened in depth and its’ present professional structure is to be preserved and enhanced accordingly.


Today, the Turkish Coast Guard Command with its’ professional “Force Structure” which comprises of highly qualified military personnel and state-of-the-art surface & air assets, is capable of conducting all assigned duties with great success before the eyes of our honorable people, on a seven days and twenty-four hours basis.





Therefore, I can proudly express that, today, the Turkish Coast Guard Command has become a “trade mark” with its’ reliable and multi mission oriented strong posture. Moreover, the Turkish Coast Guard brand is envisaged as a reliable role model by the Border/Coast Guard Authorities of many other countries especially those who are planning to modernize their structural organizations and also coast guard related platforms.





Certainly, this newly emerging involvement of many other countries to the Turkish Coast Guard brand also constitutes new opportunities for our national defense industry to export our nationally-built military ships and related onboard mission & command control systems in reference to their very reliable and successful utilization in service of the Turkish Coast Guard Command for many years.


Also, the opportunity of exporting coast guard related ships and systems offers a significant amount of extra income and revenues both for our national treasury and our defense industry companies via provision of in-house and field based operational and technical assistance training programs for the foreign coast guard personnel in accordance with special requirements of the countries who are possible customers.


On behalf of the Turkish Coast Guard Command, it is my great pleasure to use this opportunity to express our appreciation and gratitude to the honorable Turkish Nation for having shown such a sincere trust, devotion and unlimited public support to the Turkish Armed Forces and especially the Turkish Coast Guard Command in accomplishing our assigned mission and tasks to attain the maritime security and welfare of our respectable Nation.


Last but not the least, I would like to proudly emphasize that the Turkish Coast Guard Command pertinaciously and determinedly moves forward in the path drawn in line with the principles and revolutions of the Great Leader Mustafa Kemal ATATÜRK to lead Turkey to the level of contemporary civilization.