Is Turkey Arming Pakistan and Keeping Ties With India Strictly Business?

The recent arrival of a Turkish C-130E military transport aircraft in Pakistan has sparked backlash on Indian social media, amid speculation that one of Islamabad’s closest allies may have made an urgent arms delivery. This comes as tensions escalate between India and Pakistan following the recent terrorist attack in Pahalgam, fueling growing fears of conflict.

The reports were based on flight-tracking data published by open-source intelligence (OSINT) trackers, which showed the aircraft flying over the Arabian Sea on Monday.

Reacting to the incident, Sushant Sareen, a senior fellow at Observer Research Foundation (ORF), wrote on X,"India's friends and enemies are identifying themselves. China, Turkey, Azerbaijan are clearly on the Paki side."

Turkey's Response

However, the Turkey government denied the reports of them dispatching aircraft carrying weapons to Pakistan. "A cargo plane from Türkiye landed in Pakistan for refuelling. It then continued on its route. Speculative news made outside of the statements of authorised persons and institutions should not be relied upon,” said the Presidency’s Directorate of Communications.

Following a cabinet meeting in Ankara, Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also called for de-escalation of tensions between India and Pakistan.

""We want the escalating tensions between Pakistan and India to be de-escalated as soon as possible, before they evolve into a more serious situation," said Erdogan.

The reports of Ankara providing military cargo to Islamabad came after similar kinds of reports claimed that Beijing is also delivering the PL-15 long-range missile to Pakistan. Even though China has not made any comments so far on those reports but it has recently reaffirmed its support to Pakistan “in safeguarding its sovereignty and security interests”.

Pakistan-Turkey Ties

Turkey and Pakistan share a long-standing strategic partnership, particularly in defence. In 2021, both nations signed an agreement to deepen cooperation through joint arms production. Turkey is emerging as the second-largest weapons supplier to Pakistan, after China. Citing Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Eurasian Times reported that 10% of Turkey’s total arms shipments went to Pakistan between 2020 and 2024.

Both countries are reportedly establishing a joint factory to produce Turkish-made jets. Worth mentioning that Turkey was the only country among 39 member states of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to support Pakistan’s removal from the grey list in 2020.

Moreover, Turkey has always been one of Pakistan’s most vocal supporters on Kashmir, while Islamabad has reciprocated by backing Ankara's stance on Cyprus.

Where India Stands?

Despite political divergences, economic ties between India and Turkey have remained relatively stable. While the two countries do not have a formal free trade agreement (FTA), a range of economic arrangements keeps trade flowing. In 2023, bilateral trade between New Delhi and Ankara stood at around $10bn, with India maintaining a trade surplus.

Amid rising tensions, many Indians on social media are now calling for the cancellation of travel plans to Turkey, which has seen growing interest of India tourists in recent years.