Erdogan, Musk to Discuss Cooperation in Space Technology, E-vehicle Batteries

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will receive American billionaire Elon Musk on Sunday to discuss ways of cooperation in a number of fields, from space technology to electric car batteries.

Erdogan will meet Musk at the newly built “Turkish House”, near the United Nations headquarters, where the General Assembly will meet this week.

Musk met Erdogan in Ankara in 2017, a year after the president survived a coup attempt, and relations between the two have developed since then.

Musk's SpaceX is working in cooperation with the Turkish space program to launch communications satellites. Turkey is also seeking to help develop batteries for the Togg, the first Turkish-made electric car.

The Turkish President, whose term in office last May extended his rule to a third decade, considers the planned launch of the Turksat 6A satellite next June to be a milestone achievement in terms of collecting intelligence information that may be used for military purposes.

Erdogan is encouraging the development of a self-sufficient defense industry, including the production of combat drones, to support the Turkish army amid a region besieged by conflict.