Turkey Test-Fires First Home Made Ballistic Missile 'Bora'

Turkey has test-fired its first homemade ballistic missile near the Black Sea coastal region of Sinop Thursday.

“Our missile Bora (storm), with a range of 280km, was just test-fired in Sinop. “It will strike its target in the Black Sea any minute now," the Turkish defense minister Fikri Isik was quoted as saying by various local media Thursday.

"Turkey now makes its own missile. We have gained the self-confidence to make better ones,” added the minister. Bora has a payload of 450kg and it has been developed by Turkey’s major weapons manufacturer Roketsan.

In recent years, Turkey has been pursuing a long-term plan of manufacturing weapons systems domestically. Moreover, Ankara’s NATO allies refuse to transfer the technology to the country.