ANKARA, July 6 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob today visited two of Turkey’s major defence and aerospace companies here as Malaysia sought to enhance technology cooperation with the republic.

The prime minister, who is here on a four-day official visit, visited MKE Corporation and Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI).

Upon arrival at MKE, Ismail Sabri was greeted by Minister of National Defence Hulusi Akar and MKE chief executive officer Yasin Akdere before being briefed on operations of the Turkish defence sector pioneer.

MKE, a state-owned company serving the Turkish Armed Forces as its main supplier, has 10 modern factories and over 400 ranges of products divided into four categories — ammunition, weapons, rockets, explosives and pyrotechnics.

Also present were Science, Technology, and Innovation Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba, Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Abdullah, Air Force Chief General Tan Sri Mohd Asghar Khan Goriman Khan and Army Chief General Tan Sri Zamrose Mohd Zain.

At TAI, he was briefed on operations by its president and chief executive officer Prof Temel Kotil.

Also present at TAI were Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Special Functions) Datuk Abdul Latiff Ahmad and Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT) joint chairman Tan Sri Zakri Abdul Hamid.

At the end of the visit, an air show demonstration was held for the Malaysian delegation showcasing the locally-developed T129 ATAK helicopter, Anka unmanned aerial vehicle, Hurkus training aircraft and Gokbey helicopter.

Located in the capital, the TAI production plant covers an area of five million square metres with an industrial facility of 150,000 square metres under its roof. — Bernama