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

ISTANBUL —Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has urged Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, to consider establishing a factory in Turkey during their recent meeting in New York, according to Erdogan's office.

Erdogan, who is currently in the U.S. to participate in the U.N. General Assembly, also explored potential collaboration between Musk's space exploration company, SpaceX, and Turkey's space program.

In their discussions, Erdogan expressed Turkey's interest in cooperation in artificial intelligence and SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet service. Musk indicated that SpaceX is interested in obtaining the necessary license to offer Starlink in Turkey.

Images from the meeting depicted Musk holding one of his children while engaging in discussions with Erdogan.

Mehmet Fatih Kacir, the Turkish Industry and Technology Minister present at the meeting, noted that Musk referred to Turkey as "one of the most significant candidates for Tesla investment." Additionally, discussions encompassed Turkey's armed aerial drone program.