Breaking News
Türkiye Supports Iraq’s Strategic Autonomy with Establishment of an Artillery Ammunition Production Plant.
In a move aimed at strengthening its industrial capabilities, Türkiye signed a key agreement with Iraq in 2025 to establish an artillery ammunition production plant, as reported by Turkish Century on X on April 2, 2025. This project is led by ASFAT, Türkiye’s state-owned entity dedicated to defense exports and technology transfers. The agreement represents a significant step in the strategy pursued by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan since 2015 to make Türkiye a self-sufficient defense power, as highlighted by Reuters at the time.
Iraq will be able to leverage these capabilities to strengthen its military operations against armed groups active on its territory, particularly in the northern provinces facing irregular threats (Picture source: Editing Army Recognition Group)
The partnership foresees the local production of 155mm artillery shells, 81mm and 120mm mortar rounds, and modern propellant charges. These munitions will meet a variety of operational needs, from conventional fire support to more specialized missions such as battlefield illumination or concealment of troop movements through smoke rounds. The ability to produce these munitions locally is strategic for Iraq, enabling it to enhance logistical autonomy, respond more quickly to its army’s operational needs, and reduce its dependence on foreign suppliers in a persistently unstable security environment.
Iraq will be able to leverage these capabilities to strengthen its military operations against armed groups active on its territory, particularly in the northern provinces facing irregular threats. Locally produced munitions will also support regular forces in their missions of territorial control and protection of critical infrastructure. Furthermore, the modernization of Iraqi artillery will allow more effective integration into regional and international security cooperation frameworks, while simultaneously reinforcing Iraq’s military sovereignty.
At the military and strategic level, Türkiye-Iraq relations have evolved significantly in recent years. Long strained by Turkish operations against the PKK in northern Iraq, they have gradually transformed into a more structured cooperation. Since 2020, Ankara has sought to normalize its relations with Baghdad while maintaining its traditional ties with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). This rapprochement intensified with the signing in March 2024 of a Memorandum of Understanding on military and security cooperation, under which Iraq officially designated the PKK as a banned organization, aligning itself with Türkiye’s counterterrorism position. This dynamic was further consolidated by President Erdoğan’s historic visit to Baghdad in April 2024, his first in thirteen years, during which an agreement was reached to transform the Turkish military base in Bashiqa into a Türkiye-Iraq Joint Training and Cooperation Center, although this transformation has yet to materialize.
This military rapprochement forms part of a dual-track policy combining security and diplomacy. On one hand, Ankara continues to conduct regular military operations against PKK infrastructure, particularly in the Metina, Zap, and Avaşin regions. On the other hand, it has multiplied diplomatic initiatives, strengthening ties with both Baghdad and Erbil to stabilize its strategic posture amid Iraq’s internal political uncertainties and broader regional dynamics.
The pressure exerted by the Trump administration to reduce Iraq’s dependence on Iran has offered Türkiye a strategic window to intensify its engagement. Türkiye is capitalizing on the weakening of Iranian influence to consolidate its security and economic presence in Iraq, in a regional context marked by intense geopolitical rivalries.
On the economic front, another dimension of cooperation has emerged around oil exports via the Iraq-Türkiye pipeline. After more than two years of interruption due to legal and financial disputes, including an arbitral ruling in Paris, negotiations resumed in early 2025 to allow the flow of oil to the Turkish port of Ceyhan to restart. The Association of the Petroleum Industry of Kurdistan (APIKUR) has called for swift agreements to secure payment for past and future shipments, emphasizing the importance of restoring a vital revenue stream for Iraq, estimated at nearly $19 billion in lost income during the suspension. Although negotiations remain complex, the shared willingness of Baghdad, the KRG, and Ankara to reach an understanding once again highlights the growing interdependence between Iraq and Türkiye.
The agreement signed between ASFAT and Iraq to establish an artillery ammunition plant thus represents more than a simple technological transfer. It is part of a broader realignment of bilateral relations, where security, diplomacy, and economic cooperation progress together. By strengthening Iraq’s military autonomy while consolidating its strategic presence in a region characterized by influence rivalries, Türkiye seeks to build a lasting relationship capable of withstanding internal political fluctuations and external geopolitical pressures. This development underscores Türkiye’s increasingly important role as a key military and industrial actor in the Middle East.