MediumII Cyber Warfare & Critical Infrastructure10 October 2026, Saturday

Four Turkish defence firms bar foreign electric cars from their campuses

Mahmut Faruk Akşit, general manager of TUSAŞ Engine Industries (TEI), said ASELSAN, ROKETSAN, HAVELSAN and TEI no longer allow foreign electric cars onto their campuses. The reason, he said, is that the cars' cameras and sensors map facilities and are controlled from abroad.

Location: DENIZLI

Akşit spoke at a conference on artificial intelligence, biology and genetics at Pamukkale University's institute in Serinhisar. Türkiye Today says the speech was given on Saturday 10 October, while AA ran the story at 08:41 on 11 October. According to Akşit, domestically made electric cars can enter the campuses because their software and control rest with Turkish companies. TEI keeps critical data on systems physically separated from the internet.

The statement has clear limits. Akşit said his remarks were a personal assessment, and neither the four companies nor the Defence Industry Agency has published a written policy. No brand or country was named, and no start date was given for the restriction. His claim that AI almost always uses cars like missiles in war simulations could not be independently verified either.

The practice is close to the line taken by allies. Poland's General Staff banned Chinese-made vehicles from secure military sites on 17 February 2026 and barred personnel from connecting phones to their infotainment systems. A US Commerce Department rule in force since 17 March 2025 bans connected-vehicle software linked to China and Russia from model year 2027. Türkiye's rule, by contrast, is not yet written down; it is enforced at the company gate.

Talay assessment

Bottom line

Without a written rule, Türkiye's four largest defence firms have joined the Polish and US line that treats connected cars as sensor networks. Because the practice admits domestic cars and keeps foreign ones out, the security decision is also an industrial one. The likeliest path is that the restriction stays an internal practice and quietly spreads to other critical sites.

Likely effects

Critical infrastructure securityPositive1–6 months
By keeping out vehicles that collect camera, location and over-the-air update data, defence campuses shrink the surface for data leaks; the same logic could set a model for energy and public facilities.
Turkish car marketUncertain1–6 months
A gate open to domestic cars and closed to foreign ones also limits corporate fleet demand for Chinese brands already squeezed by customs duties.
Türkiye–China relationsNegative6 months+
With no written policy, Beijing has no official target to respond to, but the practice adds a new item to investment negotiations.

Possibilities, ranked

1
Quiet spread55%
The restriction is applied at other defence and public facilities without becoming a written rule.
Watch: A similar entry restriction announced by another public body or defence company
2
Written standard30%
The Cyber Security Directorate or the Defence Industry Agency issues a critical-site standard for connected vehicles.
Watch: A connected-vehicle security regulation in the Official Gazette or on an agency website
3
Climbdown15%
The companies frame the remarks as a personal view and the practice is relaxed.
Watch: An official notice from ASELSAN, ROKETSAN, HAVELSAN or TEI correcting the statement

Probabilities are calibrated judgement based on the sources, not measurement, and are revised as new information arrives. Not investment advice.

Market reaction

Indicators affected

Companies enforcing the ban▼ 4
US software ban▼ Model year 2027

Bottom line

Likely effects

Possibilities, ranked

Sources