Turkey Hosts Record Efes 2026 Exercise With Nine New Nations
The largest edition of Turkey's Efes military exercise concluded May 22 after six weeks of day and night drills. Nine countries participated for the first time, including Syria with a 20-person unit.
jpost.comTurkey completed its largest Efes military exercise on May 22 after drills ran from April 11 at the Doğanbey Training Area in Seferihisar near Izmir. Nine countries joined for the first time: Bulgaria, the Netherlands, Sweden, Japan, Egypt, Poland, Vietnam, Portugal and Syria.
A Turkish military official said a Syrian unit of 20 personnel took part in an air assault operation and fired weapons from a Turkish utility helicopter.
Fifty nationally built systems appeared for the first time, including the Korkut short-range air defense system, the Gokbey utility helicopter, the 105 mm Boran howitzer, and swarming drones. Media observed a night phase with live-fire missions, helicopter flares, and a 2,000-pound Mk-84 bomb detonation.
Day operations featured naval landings, tank fire, paratrooper drops, and submarine sonar searches.
Çubukçuoğlu of TRENDS Research
& Advisory in Abu Dhabi described Syria's participation as "a sign of deepening cooperation" between the two countries. " >"Efes 2026 is a showcase of Turkey's burgeoning defense industrial base to attract new customers, build new systems, [and] weapons concepts between air defense, army, and naval units.
Key Facts
Story Timeline
3 events- April 11, 2026
Efes 2026 exercise began at Doğanbey Training Area.
2 sourcesBreaking Defense - May 22, 2026
Final day of the six-week exercise concluded.
2 sourcesBreaking Defense - May 2026
Nine countries participated for the first time, including Syria.
2 sourcesBreaking Defense
Potential Impact
- 01
Turkey demonstrated new defense systems to potential export customers.
- 02
Syrian forces gained exposure to Turkish air assault tactics.
Transparency Panel
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