Turkey aims for the moon
Turkey's President Erdoğan presented a new national space programme on Tuesday. Turks will fly to the moon for the Republic's hundredth birthday in 2023, he said.
On the way up into the Premier League
Erdoğan's plans are more than just a gimmick, explains Yeni Şafak:
“The most important part of the space studies is the safety of 'our satellites', which are indispensable for the use of 5G technology, the defence industry and new technologies with autonomous propulsion systems such as [the national electric car Project] TOGG. Turkey will land a spacecraft on the moon to mark the 100th birthday of the Republic. But more importantly, it will put its own satellites into orbit with its own rockets. ... That is what really bothers those who have been doing their utmost to discredit the space project for the past two days! ... The day Turkey launches its own satellites with its own rockets, it will be in the Premier League and a global player.”
Catching votes with astronaut dreams
Elaborate space plans: exactly the right thing in view of the current economic crisis, Emin Çölaşan jests in Sözcü:
“Like the people his excellency Mr. Recep mentions, I, too, have dreamed of becoming an astronaut and a cosmonaut! I wear the special clothes, land on the moon or Mars, walk slowly, step by step. And before I get out of the space capsule, I open the AKP and Erdoğan posters in my hand so that everyone can see them. ... Talk about seeing the world through rose-coloured glasses. Suddenly I wake up and ask myself: 'According to NASA, a rocket flight with a moon landing costs at least 30 billion US dollars. Where does our Lord get all the money from? ' But then a voice hums in my ear: 'Forget the money, we need votes for the 2023 election ...'”
Yes we can!
It is terrible to see that the opposition is even mocking this programme, the pro-government daily Sabah finds:
“The sentence, 'We can't even go to the pub, so how are we supposed to make it to the moon?' highlights not only the inferiority complexes of those who say it, but also their actual inferiority. ... But who, if not the president, can inspire new enthusiasm in society? ... These days you can cross the Bosphorus in two places below ground and in three places above ground. The Çanakkale Bridge is almost completed. Turkish Airlines is a genuine global brand. ... We will go to the moon, and even further. If Elon Musk can plan to build a colony on Mars, why can't great Turkey even dream of going to the moon?”