ANKARA

Türkiye and Azerbaijan are eyeing new cooperation and training deals to strengthen bilateral relations in space, aviation, science, and technology.

Azerbaijan’s space agency Azercosmos and Türkiye-based Gokmen Space and Aviation Training Center (GUHEM) signed a cooperation deal called “Startech.”

An Azerbaijani delegation comprising 26 students from 6 different universities visited leading Turkish defense and tech firms as a part of the deal.

The student delegation also met Türkiye’s first and second space travelers, Alper Gezeravci and Tuva Cihangir Atasever, receiving a two-day training at GUHEM during the visit that started on March 14.

Partnership in space came to the fore following the Teknofest Baku event in 2022, an Azerbaijani arm of the world’s largest space and aviation festival held by Türkiye.

Baku hosted the 74th International Astronautical Congress (IAC) in 2022, and Türkiye will open its doors to the event in 2026, marking another event to further boost space and aviation operations.

Elza Samedli, science and higher education director at Azercosmos, told Anadolu that the main purpose of the Startech project was to determine the best Turkish tech institutions and examine the facilities and opportunities these institutions provide in terms of computer, software, and artificial intelligence (AI) studies.

Samedli stated that the Startech project is a program to “lay the foundation” to establish further cooperation between Türkiye and Azerbaijan.

She mentioned a student who attended the presentations of Turkish defense firms Aselsan and Havelsan and was inspired by the technologies the two firms developed. As a son who lost his father to the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, he said the technology Turkish firms developed would’ve saved lives in the war, while wishing for peace.

Imran Muhtarov, director of Azercosmos Cosmic Academy, told Anadolu that the two countries’ relations are diversifying and strengthening, noting that the opportunity for students and universities to get together and exchange knowledge and experience is important.

Halit Mirahmetoglu, general manager of GUHEM, said the Azerbaijani student delegation was received for training on the basics of aviation and space at the facility. He mentioned that Azerbaijani students will frequently visit Türkiye for these trainings.

“We hosted many students from Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and now from Azerbaijan as a part of the programs we started last year with the Organization of Turkic States—more countries will be included to have the opportunity to transfer the experience Türkiye gained via its ‘National Technology Move’ to others,” he said.