The 10th Council Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Space Cooperation Organization (APSCO), headquartered in Beijing (People's Republic of China), of which Turkey is one of the founding countries, was held in Istanbul on 5-8 September 2016.
TUBITAK Vice President Dr. Orkun Hasekioğlu, TUBITAK UZAY Institute Director Assoc. Dr. Lokman Kuzu, TUBITAK UZAY Institute Director Assoc. Dr. Erdal Yılmaz, TUBITAK UZAY Institute Deputy Director Dr. Zeynep Arzıman Büyükboduk, Bilateral and Multilateral Relations Manager of TUBITAK International Cooperation Department, and Hande Sarı Asp, Head of Department from the Deputy Directorate General for International Political Organizations of the Directorate General for Multilateral Political Affairs, representing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, attended the 10th Council Meeting, which we hosted.
The Council was chaired by Prof. Dr. Mohsen Bahrami, Deputy Minister of Information and Communication Technologies of Iran and President of the Iranian Space Agency, and Vice-Chairman by Major General Qaiser Anees Khurram, President of the Pakistan Space Agency (SUPARCO). APSCO Secretary General Dr. Li Xinjun and Deputy Secretary General Dr. Egemen Özalp chaired the Preparatory Meeting of the Council. In addition to Iran Space Agency and Pakistan Space Agency, senior officials from Bangladesh Space Research and Remote Sensing Organization, China National Space Administration, Mongolia Communications and Information Technology Organization, Peru Space Agency, Thailand Space Affairs Office attended the meeting. APSCO's General Managers of External Relations and Legal Affairs; Strategic Planning and Program Management; Training, Courses and Database Management; and Administrative and Financial Affairs made presentations and submitted reports on the activities carried out in 2015-2016 for approval. The Council Meeting ended with a social and cultural program in the historical and touristic areas of Istanbul. It was decided to organize the next Council Meeting in Tehran (Iran).
What does APSCO do?
In the Council Meetings of the organization, where Bangladesh, China, Iran, Mongolia, Pakistan, Peru, Thailand, Thailand and Turkey are members, Mexico is an observer member and Indonesia's membership is in the process of approval, high-level participation is ensured and the decisions of APSCO are approved. APSCO member countries are represented at the level of Minister, Deputy Minister, Heads of Space Agencies and Undersecretaries at the Council Meetings.
Within the scope of our membership in APSCO, we support, establish and strengthen cooperation programs on the use of space science and technology for peaceful purposes; support member countries in the fields of space technology research, development, application and education; evaluate and implement space policies; support cooperation, joint development and sharing of developments in the field of space among member countries; improve cooperation between relevant institutions and organizations; and work towards industrialization of space technology and applications. In line with the needs of member countries, educational scholarships are provided in the field of space; joint projects, workshops, symposiums, trainings and courses are organized and satellite data are shared. In order to make maximum use of the activities within the scope of our APSCO membership, we act together with our relevant institutions and organizations, and our cooperation in this regard is increasing day by day.
For more information about APSCO http://www.apsco.int address can be visited.
