Turkey signed a letter of intent with France and Italy on Wednesday to strengthen cooperation on joint defense projects including air and missile defense systems, Reuters reported quoting Turkish defense ministry sources.

As a first step, the Franco-Italian EUROSAM consortium and Turkish companies will look into a system based on the SAMP-T missile system produced by EUROSAM and determine the common needs of the three countries, the sources noted.

The letter of intent was signed in Brussels, where Turkey’s Defence Minister Nurettin Canikli was attending a meeting of NATO defense ministers.