BLUE LANTERN: VERIFYING BONA FIDES OF REGISTERED

UNCLAS ANKARA 001685 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR PM/DTCC E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KOMC ETTC TU SUBJECT: BLUE LANTERN: VERIFYING BONA FIDES OF REGISTERED BROKER ISMAIL TURGUT - CASE NO. K-2297 REF: SECSTATE 99610 ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: We visited Pegasus Defense Company on October 21 to meet with its managing director, Ismail Turgut, and a number of the company,s principal officers. Based on the site visit, the information provided by the company and a name check conducted by Post RSO, we believe Pegasus is a legitimate company appropriately licensed by the Government of Turkey to engage in defense services. Company representatives were fully cooperative and have expressed willingness to respond to any additional questions from the USG. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (SBU) According to the information provided by company representatives, Pegasus was established in 2003. Its principal officers include: Ismail Turgut (Managing Director),retired Air Force Brigadier General Bulent Tuzcu (consultant),and Unal Kahveci (Project Manager). ¶3. (SBU) The company has been accredited by the Turkish Ministry of National Defense to store defense items within their facilities. Turgut showed us the Facility Security Clearance Certificates for each of the sites signed by the Ministry of Foreign Affair's NATO and Euro-Atlantic Infrastructure and Logistics Department. Regular annual inspections made by NATO-certified teams from the Ministry of National Defense ensure that its main office in Ankara, the Ostum Repair Center near Ankara, and the Aegean Free Zone in Izmir (Note: We did not visit the latter two sites. End Note) all met NATO security standards. The company has one additional storage facility located in the United Kingdom. ¶4. (SBU) Company representatives told us that they handle and store items on the USML only for the Turkish Armed Forces, their main client. The company does business with entities from all the branches of the military, and its primary business is importing materials for and providing repair services to the Turkish military. Turgut provided assurances that the company did not do business with countries outside of NATO. ¶5. (SBU) Based on the site visit, the information provided by company representatives and a name check conducted by Post,s RSO, we believe the company is a bona fide company authorized by the GoT to conduct business in defense services. JEFFREY "Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.intelink.s gov.gov/wiki/Portal:Turkey"