VZCZCXYZ0010
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHAK #0017 0041208
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 041208Z JAN 08
FM AMEMBASSY ANKARA
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 4833

UNCLAS ANKARA 000017 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
PM/DTCC - BLUE LANTERN COORDINATOR 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ETTC TU KOMC
SUBJECT: BLUE LANTERN LEVEL 3: PRE-LICENSE END-USE CHECK ON 
LICENSE 05-050075628 
 
REF: A. STATE 164844 (07) 
     ¶B. STATE 217260 (05) 
     ¶C. STATE 140478 (06) 
     ¶D. ANKARA 502 (07) 
     ¶E. ANKARA 6252 (06) 
 
 ¶1. This is an action request.  Please see paragraph 6. 
 
¶2. Per ref a. we met with Mechanical and Chemical Industries 
Corporation (MKEK) Director of Marketing and Export Akif 
Akgul on January 3, 2008 to discuss case number 05-050075628 
related to an order for approximately one thousand Smith and 
Wesson handguns. 
 
¶3.  Akgul confirmed that MKEK is a state-owned company which 
falls under the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries (SSM) 
in the Ministry of Defense.   MKEK was established in 1950 
and is one of the leading defense companies in Turkey.  MKEK 
is the sole seller of imported handguns and rifles in Turkey, 
a responsibility that SSM assigned the company. The sole 
point of sales for imported handguns is at MKEK headquarters, 
located in Tandogan, Ankara.  Imported handguns are stored on 
site in a secured facility that is guarded around the clock 
by several layers of security.  Akgul also stated that 
individuals seeking to purchase an imported weapon must first 
obtain a purchasing license from the Ministry of Interior. 
The Ministry of Interior approves the licenses only after 
conducting a criminal background check on the applicant. 
Once the license is obtained, an individual would apply to 
MKEK to purchase an imported gun, and will be notified once 
the type of weapon requested is in stock.  Upon purchasing 
the weapon from MKEK, the individual must register with and 
apply for a handgun user license from the provincial Security 
Directorate.  Individuals are permitted to own at most two 
handguns.  These licenses must be renewed annually by the gun 
owner.  Once the two-gun limit has been reached, a gun owner 
can only purchase another gun by turning in a gun that was 
previously purchased.  Gun owners may purchase up to 200 
rounds of ammunition per year.  Akgul said he is familiar 
with the restrictions governing the import of U.S. Munitions 
List (USML) commodities, and stated that the re-exporting of 
imported handguns by individuals is prohibited under Turkish 
law. 
 
¶4. Akgul stated that the amount of weapons in the order 
reflect the projected sales of each type of handgun over the 
course of the year.  Akgul estimated the total number of 
imported guns sold in all of Turkey at about 4000 per year. 
Although Akgul was courteous and cooperative throughout our 
meeting, he expressed frustration that this was the third 
time in two years that he has met with embassy officials to 
discuss the status of MKEK and the controls that are in place 
to satisfy the restrictions associated with USML commodities. 
 He also stated that none of the orders that MKEK had placed 
with Smith and Wesson over the past three years have been 
delivered.  We confirmed that there were at least two other 
occasions in the past three years when we conducted 
pre-license end-use checks on MKEK (refs b and c), one of 
which involved an order with Smith and Wesson (ref. b). 
 
¶5.  Based on reporting in ref. d and e, and the fact that 
MKEK is a well-established, government-owned entity that is 
the sole authorized point of sales for all imported handguns 
in Turkey, and that there are robust controls established to 
limit ownership of these weapons to vetted individuals, Post 
believes the proposed sale meets the appropriate end-use 
standards. 
 
¶6.  Action request:  We would appreciate PM/DTCC confirmation 
whether the licenses in refs b and c were approved.  We also 
request that PM/DTCC no longer require pre-license end-use 
checks on handgun orders by MKEK. 
 
Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at 
http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Turk ey 
 
MCELDOWNEY