Turkey's President Erdogan and Elon Musk discuss establishing a Tesla car factory in Turkey

ISTANBUL — (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on Elon Musk to establish a factory in Turkey for his electric car company Tesla during a meeting in New York, Erdogan’s office said Monday.

Erdogan, who is in the U.S. to attend the U.N. General Assembly, also discussed potential cooperation between Musk’s space exploration firm SpaceX and Turkey’s space program, the Turkish president's office said.

The statement said Erdogan told Musk that Turkey would welcome cooperation on artificial intelligence and Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite internet service. Musk said SpaceX wanted to secure the necessary license to offer Starlink in Turkey.

Images of the meeting showed Musk holding one of his sons as he talked to Erdogan.

Turkish Industry and Technology Minister Mehmet Fatih Kacir, who attended the meeting, said Musk described Turkey as “among the most important candidates for Tesla investment.”

He added that Musk and Erdogan also discussed Turkey’s armed aerial drone program.

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