Turkey readies legislation to found space agency

By Sarp Ozer

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey’s government is preparing legislation to establish a space agency, the country’s deputy prime minister said on Monday.

"The efforts to establish the Turkish Space Agency will be accelerated," Numan Kurtulmus told reporters after a Council of Ministers meeting in the Turkish capital, Ankara.

Describing the proposed space agency as a “necessity” for Turkey, Kurtulmus said the draft legislation would be presented to parliament when it was ready, but did not specify an exact time.

This issue came onto the agenda for the first time in 2014 when Turkey’s then transport minister said the government was preparing legislation to present to the Council of Ministers.

The Turkish Space Agency was also included in a government action plan in December 2015.

*Ilker Girit in Istanbul contributed to this story.