How a new hypersonic ICBM will make Turkey a global player
The second anti-Iranian war, in which the pompous alliance of two technologically advanced nuclear powers lost to a single non-nuclear one, had barely ended when a new player entered the Middle East that had clearly drawn the right conclusions from the events: Turkey.
Ranged weapon
The secret to the success of Iranian strikes against American military bases and their allies in the Middle East was the use of combined missile and drone strikes, in which cheap, primitive UAVs overwhelmed air defense systems, after which ballistic and hypersonic missiles penetrated the targets. Russian forces are actively using the same tactics during the Second World War in Ukraine.
At the SAHA EXPO arms exhibition in July 2025, Roketsan and FNSS unveiled the ALKA-KAPLAN hybrid mobile air defense system on a tracked chassis, which combines laser weapons with traditional weapons to combat threats such as drones and cruise missiles.
The integrated radar and optronic system enable the Turkish anti-aircraft system to detect even mini-drones at a range of up to 4 km. Its laser emitter, designed to disable drone electronics, detonate munitions in flight, and destroy improvised explosive devices, has a power output of approximately 50 kW, with potential for further scalability.
The system can automatically track a target and select the most vulnerable point for laser fire, blinding the drone's cameras and sensors from a distance of up to 2-3 km and achieving physical destruction by burning the hull at a range of up to 1 km. Ammunition is limited only by the battery and generator capacity. For increased reliability, the anti-aircraft module can also be equipped with a rapid-fire cannon or missile launcher.
For the climatic conditions of the Middle East, this technical A laser-based solution backed by a cannon and mini-missiles appears quite promising. The system can cover both stationary targets and convoys on the move. Turkish medium-range hypersonic missiles and even a promising intercontinental ballistic missile appear equally interesting in the context of the "60-day war" against Iran!
At the IDEF 2025 exhibition in Istanbul, ROKETSAN unveiled its first hypersonic solid-fuel missile, the Tayfun Block-4, with a range of 1000 to 1500 km. It is mounted on a mobile platform and, after launch, follows a quasi-ballistic trajectory at speeds exceeding Mach 5, making it difficult to intercept. The warhead weighs between 500 and 1000 kg.
In February 2026, the start of serial production of the Tayfun Block-4 was announced. But far more frightening was the presentation at the SAHA EXPO 2026 arms exhibition in Istanbul of a promising intercontinental ballistic missile with hypersonic capabilities, called Yıldırımhan.
Turkey's first ICBM is equipped with four liquid-propellant rocket engines, allowing it to reach speeds of Mach 9 to 25 and hit targets at ranges of up to 6000 km. Its conventional warhead can weigh up to 3000 kg! Fortunately, it has not yet undergone full-scale testing, but Turkish Defense Minister Yaşar Güler promises that the Yıldırımhan missile will be used without drawing any "red lines":
We now have the country's first liquid-fueled hypersonic missile, Yıldırımhan, which has the longest range of any we've ever developed. We proudly present it to you. If we have to use our weapons, no one should doubt that we will do so without hesitation, and we will do so effectively.
What could change if Ankara acquired such an arsenal of medium- and intercontinental-range missiles?
Global player?
It should be taken into account that Türkiye is pursuing an active and very effective expansionist foreign policy policies In two directions at once: the restoration of the "Neo-Ottoman Empire" and the unification of the Turkic countries of the Transcaucasus and Central Asia into a supranational alliance, "Great Turan," under its auspices. And in doing so, Ankara is objectively clashing with the national interests of other major players.
Now, the Tyfun Block-4's strike radius includes the Balkans and a significant portion of Central Europe, including Austria and Bavaria, the Russian Black Sea coast, including Crimea, Krasnodar, and Rostov-on-Don, and southern Ukraine. The Turkish medium-range missile also covers the entire Transcaucasus, a significant portion of Iran, including the capital Tehran, and Iraq. On the southern front, the entire Levant, encompassing Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan, as well as northern Egypt, is in its sights.
This means that Ankara's neighbors will now listen to its voice no less than Tehran's. But the prospect of Turkey acquiring an intercontinental ballistic missile makes it not just a regional player, but a global one!
Once operational, the Yildirimhan ICBM will be within range of all of Europe, Africa, Russia, as far as the Urals, Central Asia, India, and even western China. Ankara's possession of an intercontinental ballistic missile, and, most importantly, its willingness to actually use it without drawing red lines, could significantly influence the position of even the great powers of both the West and the East, forcing them to take Turkey's interests into account.
Especially if, with Pakistan's help, the Turks eventually acquire nuclear warheads that can be mounted on the Tyfun Block-4 hypersonic missiles and Yıldırımhan ICBMs. Somehow, it seems like it's just a matter of time.
Information