Turkey has exported $150 million of defense equipment to Tunisia


According to information published by the Daily Sabah website on December 24, 2020, the Turkish defense industry has exported $150 million of military equipment to Tunisia, including Vuran, Kirpi, and Edjer Yalcin wheeled armored vehicles as well as Anka UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles).
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Kirpi MRAP vehicles of Tunisian army. (Picture source Twitter account The Dead District)


The defense products delivered to Tunisia include Anka medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), Kirpi mine-resistant ambush-protected (MRAP) vehicles from the company BMC, Ejder Yalçın 4x4 armored vehicles produced by Nurol Makina, tankers and tanks manufactured by the company Katmerciler, and electro-optic systems from Aselsan.

According to the Military balance 2020, the Tunisian armed army has a total of 71 Ejder Yalcin 4x4 armored vehicles, 9 Vuran 4x4 APC (Armored Personnel Carrier) vehicles, and 100 BMC Kirpi MRAP vehicles. All these combat vehicles were delivered to Tunisia from 2014 to 2019.

The Ejder Yalcin is a family of wheeled armored vehicles produced in 4x4 and 6x6 configurations by the Turkish company Nurol Makina. The vehicle features a V-shaped hull design, integrating floating floor plates and blast mitigation seating to provide high level of protection against mines and IEDs blast. It can accommodate up to 11 military personnel and has a payload of up to 4 tons.

The Kirpi is a wheeled armored vehicle in the category of MRAP (Mine Resistant Ambush Protected) designed and manufactured by the Turkish company BMC. The layout of the Kirpi MRAP is similar to a heavy truck with armor protection. The engine is located at the front, the crew member in the middle, and the troop's compartment at the rear. The vehicle can carry a total of 13 military personnel including driver, commander, gunner, and 10 infantrymen. It features an all-welded steel armored monocoque hull with a V-shaped lower half that provides a high level of protection against mines and improvised explosive devices (IEDs), small arms fire and shell splinters.

The Vuran 4x4 APC is also manufactured by the Turkish company BMC and was unveiled in 2015 at the defense exhibition IDEF in Turkey. The vehicle has a crew of two and the rear of the hull can accommodate up to seven military personnel.

The Vuran features a monocoque-type armored design for the crew compartment that reduces weight for a given amount of armor compared to vehicles to which armor has been attached to an underlying frame. The V-shaped hull is of all-welded steel armor construction that provides the occupants with protection against 5.56 × 45 mm small arms fire, although also available is protection against 7.62 × 51 mm armor-piercing small arms fire.