Turkish firearms manufacturing company, Trabzon Gun Industry Co. (TİSAŞ) has signed a preliminary protocol with Malaysia to establish a weapons factory in the country with an investment of $10 million.

The company, based in Turkey's Black Sea province of Trabzon, annually exports weapons worth $8 million to 30 countries, including the U.S. It now aims to increase its market share in Malaysia and sell weapons in nearby countries. TİSAŞ Chairman Ahmet Alemdaroğlu said they have received joint investment proposals from other countries following the agreement with Malaysia, adding that if the preliminary protocol ends up in agreement, they will start the factory investment.

Alemdaroğlu added that the imported input rate in the weapons it produces and are used by the Philippines police is 10 percent. "Malaysia has initiated preparations for the infrastructure for production, setup and testing almost 20,000 units annually. As part of the efforts we will make with our partner company, investments, and therefore indoor production areas, will expand for production. The land has been purchased accordingly. The goal of our partner is to meet the needs of the country's military and police forces, as well as to export to other countries in the region. In the first phase, we will only produce according to the needs of their own security forces."

Recalling that they established a factory in the Turkic Republics 10 years ago, Alemdaroğlu said that the Malaysian government made the offer considering the success of this factory.

On the sidelines of Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition (LIMA 2019) in Malaysia, the most prominent exhibition of its kind in the Asia-Pacific region, TİSAŞ signed an agreement on April 2 with a Malaysian company to jointly produce weapons for Malaysian security forces.

TİSAŞ, which holds 15 percent of the Turkish arms market, will jointly produce Zigana PX-9 type guns together with IDC Technologies Sdn Bhd. After the agreement is put into force, Malaysia will be the second country to jointly produce weapons with a Turkish firm.

TISAŞ's main products are pistols and weapons that are used by police and military forces around the world, with Turkey and the U.S. being the company's top buyers.