Nairobi Inks Military Deal with Turkey

In a bid to bolster bilateral relations in the defence sector and enhance the supply and development of military industry products and services, Kenya and Türkiye have officially signed a “Defence Industry Cooperation Agreement.”

The agreement was inked during the 16th International Defense Industry Fair, IDEF’23, held in Istanbul last week.

The signing ceremony took place between Kenya’s Defence Minister Aden Duale and President of Defence Industries Haluk Görgün, highlighting the mutual commitment to collaborate on various aspects of defense and security.

The agreement with Kenya is expected to be a key driver in institutionalizing cooperation and advancing joint initiatives in the field, Duale commented on the deal.

“…I had a rare opportunity to witness various innovations in the defence industry that the Turkish military had ventured into which inform our efforts in expansion and modernization of our military equipment,’’ said Duale on Twitter, now rebranded X.

Among the crucial aspects included in the agreement are provisions for sales, maintenance, modernization, and technology transfer of systems and platforms in the inventory.

Military sources indicate warships and Armored Personnel Vehicles (APCs) were the main focus of Duale’s visit.

In January 2021, the Kenyan military ordered and received 118 four-wheel drive personnel carriers from Turkish armored vehicle manufacturer Katmerciler.

The multi-billion deal saw KDF deploy the Hizir vehicles for counterterror operations against the al-Shabaab militant group.

Safety concerns regarding these APCs had been raised including a lack of air conditioners but KDF authorized the purchase.

“…the engine, gearbox, and suspension were found to be unsuitable for us. One broke down in field tests up north. DoD proposed substitution with Allison gearboxes, MTU engines, and German suspensions…’’ an anonymous military source told KFP

“…we tend to go for the lower spec to create necessary space for inflation. Imagine a soldier is on the Panhard on watch, and the scorching sun is hitting that metal and you do not have an AC simply because the top brass opted for an APC without an air conditioner,’’ lamented the military source.