'China values cooperation in aerospace industry'

TECH

'China values cooperation in aerospace industry'

2017-12-05 12:29 Last Updated At：15:01

Cooperation in the aerospace industry is pivotal to astronautic development, as it helps eliminate distrust and fosters mutual confidence among countries, said Romania's first astronaut Dumitru-Dorin Prunariu, who recently returned from the 21st International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) Human in Space Symposium in China's southern city of Shenzhen.

"Only cooperation in various fields, including in space, can make nations know each other better and remove any traces of suspicion and build mutual trust."

As the former president of the Association of Space Explorers (ASE), Prunariu praised China's efforts in promoting space cooperation in an interview with Xinhua.

"After the Belt and Road Initiative, I think China has a Galactic Initiative in mind. It has invited all developing nations to conduct experiments on its space station planned to operate into orbit in 2022."

"In 2022, China will have its own space station, and it is currently encouraging all developing countries to take part in space exploration programs for the benefit of mankind," he added.

In 2016, China signed with the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) an agreement to open the country's future space station for science experiments and foreign astronauts to herald better accessibility to space for developing countries.

According to Prunariu, the move for China is "to ensure national security and to gain its place, prestige and recognition on the global stage as a strong nation with a developing space industry and a high level of technology." At the same time, it proves “that China considers the UN as highly important in international cooperation," which is the first time in the history of the United Nations (UN), said Prunariu.

"China is strikingly advanced in space activities and has been focusing on manned flights," he said, adding that "time has shown that China is promoting space activities and is open to developing space projects as well as advanced science and technology."

Turkey strikes Kurdish militant targets in Iraq and Syria following deadly attack on defense company

2024-10-24 06:18 Last Updated At：06:21

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey’s air force struck Kurdish militant targets in Iraq and Syria on Wednesday in an apparent retaliation for an attack at a key state-run defense company that killed five people and wounded more than 20 others.

The defense ministry said more than 30 targets were “destroyed” in the aerial offensive, without providing details on the locations that were hit. It said “all kinds of precautions” were taken to prevent harm to civilians.

The strike came hours after suspected Kurdish militants set off explosives and opened fire at the aerospace and defense company TUSAS. The two attackers — a man and a woman — also were killed, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said. At least 22 people, including seven security personnel, were injured during the attack.

Yerlikaya said the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, was believed to be behind the attack at the defense company. Defense Minister Yasar Guler also pointed the finger at the PKK.

“We give these PKK scoundrels the punishment they deserve every time. But they never come to their senses,” Guler said. “We will pursue them until the last terrorist is eliminated.”

Turkey regularly conducts airstrikes against the PKK — which has a foothold in Iraq — and against a Kurdish militia group in Syria that is affiliated with the militants.

There was no immediate statement from the PKK.

The Islamic State group and leftist extremists have also carried out past attacks in Turkey.

"I condemn this heinous terrorist attack,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said during a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of a BRICS meeting in Russia.

Putin offered condolences. A U.S. Embassy statement said Washington “strongly condemns today’s terrorist attack."

TUSAS designs, manufactures and assembles civilian and military aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles and other defense industry and space systems. Its UAVs have been instrumental in Turkey gaining an upper hand in its fight against Kurdish militants.

The attack occurred a day after the leader of Turkey’s far-right nationalist party that's allied with Erdogan raised the possibility that the PKK's imprisoned leader could be granted parole if he renounces violence and disbands his organization.

Abdullah Ocalan's group has been fighting for autonomy in southeast Turkey in a conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people since the 1980s. It is considered a terrorist group by Turkey and its Western allies.

The country's pro-Kurdish political party, which also condemned the TUSAS attack, noted that it had occurred at a time when the possibility of a dialogue to end the conflict had emerged.

Turkish media said the assailants arrived Wednesday at an entry to the TUSAS complex in a taxi. The assailants, carrying assault weapons, detonated an explosive device next to the taxi, causing panic and allowing them to enter.

One of the victims was identified as mechanical engineer Zahide Guclu, who had gone to the entrance to collect flowers sent by her husband, the state-run Anadolu Agency.

The taxi driver was also killed by the assailants and his body was found in the trunk of the vehicle, the agency reported.

Orhan Akdundar, a brother of a TUSAS employee, was among relatives waiting outside the complex for news of their loved ones.

“I called my brother who was inside and said, ‘What happened?’ He said a bomb had exploded and said that gunshots continued for a very long time,” Akdundar said. “There was a huge commotion. The gendarmerie, special forces and other security forces were all here. There were lots of ambulances. Then the phones shut off and I wasn’t able to establish communication.”

An unidentified TUSAS employee shouted: “We will work harder and produce more in defiance of the traitors” as he and other colleagues were being evacuated from the premises, according to a video aired by HaberTurk.

Security camera images, aired on television, showed a man in plainclothes carrying a backpack and holding an assault rifle.

The interior minister said security teams were dispatched as soon as the attack started at around 3:30 p.m.

Multiple gunshots were heard after security forces entered the site, the DHA news agency and other media reported. Helicopters were seen flying above the premises.

Authorities issued a temporary blackout on the coverage of the attack and went on to throttle access to social media websites.

Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz said the target of the attack was Turkey's “success in the defense industry.”

The Iraqi Embassy in Ankara issued a statement condemning the attack. It said the embassy “affirms Iraq’s firm position in rejecting terrorism and extremism in all its forms and manifestations, and expresses the solidarity of Iraq’s government and people, with the government and people of the Republic of Turkey.” Earlier this year, Iraq announced a ban on the PKK.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres both expressed their solidarity with Turkey.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis also denounced the attack. "Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences go out to the families of the victims,” he said on X.

Associated Press writer Robert Badendieck in Hamburg, Germany, contributed.