Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday spoke to billionaire Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk about ways to co-operate on space technology, Ankara said.
The head of Tesla and Space Exploration Technologies Corp chatted to Mr Erdogan about ways to collaborate with the Turkish state and Turkish private institutions.
"We will continue to closely follow the developments in our country and the world in the field of technology and to support every step taken in this field in order to benefit our nation," Mr Erdogan said in a Telegram post.
Turkey and Mr Erdogan are keen to develop domestic electric car production as a flagship product to market the country's manufacturing sectors but also to help reduce reliance on oil imports for domestic fuel needs.
Turkey announced Togg, a locally produced electric car in 2019 but analysts say the challenge for the company is rivalling long-established brands with bigger market share – such as Ford, Fiat and Renault that are already produced in Turkey.
Mr Musk’s Tesla electric vehicles first went on sale in 2008 and by 2019 were the best-selling plug-in battery-run domestic car.
Musk previously visited Turkey in November 2017 to discuss satellite plans with Mr Erdogan in person.
The visit resulted in the launch of Turkish satellite Turksat 5A on January 8 using a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the Cape Canaveral base in Florida.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Name: Brendalle Belaza
From: Crossing Rubber, Philippines
Arrived in the UAE: 2007
Favourite place in Abu Dhabi: NYUAD campus
Favourite photography style: Street photography
Favourite book: Harry Potter
Al Jazira's foreign quartet for 2017/18
Romarinho, Brazil
Lassana Diarra, France
Sardor Rashidov, Uzbekistan
Mbark Boussoufa, Morocco
MATCH INFO
Hoffenheim v Liverpool
Uefa Champions League play-off, first leg
Location: Rhein-Neckar-Arena, Sinsheim
Kick-off: Tuesday, 10.45pm (UAE)
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
The specs: 2018 Maxus T60
Price, base / as tested: Dh48,000
Engine: 2.4-litre four-cylinder
Power: 136hp @ 1,600rpm
Torque: 360Nm @ 1,600 rpm
Transmission: Five-speed manual
Fuel consumption, combined: 9.1L / 100km
MATCH INFO
First Test at Barbados
West Indies won by 381 runs
Second Test at Antigua
West Indies won by 10 wickets
Third Test at St Lucia
February 9-13
THE APPRENTICE
Director: Ali Abbasi
Starring: Sebastian Stan, Maria Bakalova, Jeremy Strong
Rating: 3/5
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
