Army clears way to use French GIAT guns against PKK
Zaman
14.07.2007
LALE SARIÄ°BRAHÄ°MOÄ?LU ANKARA
The Turkish Armed Forces (TSK), having prevented the testing of French
GIAT-made guns for almost three-and-a-half years, has now cleared the
way for the weapons’ use after a recent test concluded with success,
raising speculations that behind this rush lies an urgent requirement
for weapons with which to battle Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK)
terrorists.
GIAT guns have a range of 2,000 to 2,500 meters and the capacity to
fire 400 shots in one minute, said Turkish military experts. GIAT guns
are mounted on FNSS, Nurol and American United Defense Limited
Partnership-made armored combat vehicles (ACVs) that are lighter than
tanks, making them much more effective in the fight against terrorists.
A Turkish military source also said FNSS vehicles equipped with GIAT
guns may increase protection of Turkish soldiers against the roadside
bombs frequently used by the PKK.
Those bombs, also commonly deployed by Iraqi insurgents against US and
other coalition troops, are effective weapons produced with low
technology from old shells and mines.
A total of 515 25-milimeter guns and turrets were produced jointly by
French GIAT Industries at its Tulle facilities and by Turkey’s Cankiri
Arms Industry and Trade Co. (Cansas), a state-owned Mechanical and
Chemical Industry Corporation (MKEK) company, and delivered to the
Turkish Army Command between 1998 and 2001. The project was worth
around $115 million.
Out of the 650 FNSS-made ACVs, a total of 515 are fitted with the
25-millimeter GIAT guns and the remaining are equipped with 20 and
35-millimeter anti-aircraft guns being produced under the license of
Swiss Oerlikon-Contraves.
However, back in mid-2004, the Turkish military halted usage of GIAT
guns, saying that cracks had appeared in barrels during use, requesting
the weapons undergo tests by manufacturer GIAT. The request came
despite suggestions by Turkish military engineers that the barrels had
been cracking because their maintenance was neglected by the army.
The warranty period for the guns expired in 2001 and the army has not
signed an agreement with GIAT for fourth and fifth-level maintenance of
the guns, according to local industry sources. The lifecycle of GIAT
barrels are a minimum of 4,000 shots and maximum 6,000 shots while the
lifecycle of the GIAT guns themselves is 16,000 shots.
GIAT officials at the time also informed the Undersecretariat for the
Defense Industry (SSM) that such cracks were normal and could be
removed with a proper maintenance, the important thing was that there
the barrels had performed well during shooting.
However, despite complaints lodged by the army in 2004, firing tests
with GIAT 25M811 barrels have only taken place lately — between June
27 and July 2 this year — at the MKEK Ã?ankırı facilities. The tests
resulted in the reacceptance of GIAT guns and turrets for use.
Rush linked to increased violence
Turkish military sources have linked the decision to have the GIAT
barrels undergo testing recently to a sense of urgency that they will
be used to help deter the PKK, particularly in the country’s
Kurdish-dominated southeast.
`Two types of bullets are used in GIAT guns. One can pierce armor and
the other can destroy, for example, a cave [frequently used as mountain
hideouts by the PKK] with high explosive bullets. Thus GIAT guns are an
effective tool in the fight against the PKK,’ said a Turkish military
expert.
Turkish military sources stated that the army’s suspension of tests for
almost three-and-a-half years had no political motive.
Land Forces Commander Gen. Ä°lker BasbuÄ? announced this year that the
Turkish military has suspended military dialogue with France in protest
of the French Parliament’s adoption of a resolution that penalizes
those rejecting the so-called Armenian genocide. Turkey denies genocide
allegations, urging Armenia to agree on establishing a committee of
historians to study the allegations and unearth the truth surrounding
the World War I era deaths.
Meanwhile, as Turkey and France resolved a technical dispute over GIAT
barrels, another dispute between the two countries over French-made
anti-tank Eryx missiles continues to be heard at an international court
in Geneva.
France’s MBDA earlier took Turkey to the International Court of
Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) in Geneva
over claims that Turkey violated contract terms when it cancelled
$486.5 million worth of Eryx short-range anti-tank missiles in 2004.
SSM Undersecretary Murat Bayar cancelled the Eryx project over grounds
the company failed to deliver the goods in a timely manner and that the
missiles failed tests in Turkey. It is not known yet when the court
will make a decision.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
