Expert: Turkey Can Significantly Strengthen Europe's Defense Capability

• 4.03.2025, 18:55

In particular, the country is ready to take part in the peacekeeping mission in Ukraine.

The only country that can really strengthen European security without the participation of the United States is Turkey, which has the second largest combat-ready army in NATO, says Volodymyr Kravchenko, an observer for the international politics department of zn.ua.

He points out that Turkey's participation in the summit of leaders of several European states in London after the dispute between the presidents of Ukraine and the United States, Volodymyr Zelensky, and Donald Trump, is quite indicative.

“Today, this country is not considered a future member of the EU, has serious problems with Cyprus, Greece and France. But it can bring dividends in Europe in the security sphere. In the end, this is also in the interests of Ankara itself, which has always sought to play a more serious role in Europe,” Kravchenko notes.

Thus, Turkey has a combat-ready army of 675 thousand people, who have experience of wars in Syria and Iraq. Therefore, the Turkish army can strengthen NATO's eastern flank or even take part in the European peacekeeping mission in Ukraine. Ankara does not rule out the latter.

Yevgenia Gaber, an analyst at the Carleton University Center for Contemporary Turkish Studies, agrees with this opinion. She pointed out that Turkey has a powerful military-industrial complex that produces modern drones, fighter jets, tanks, and aircraft carriers. It also has ammunition production lines, which EU countries often do not have.

“However, Ankara needs funding for these industries. Turkey is ready to invest in strengthening collective security, but national interests are above all,” the expert emphasizes.