Türkiye Signs Artemis Accords as 71st Signatory

Türkiye's Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır signed the Artemis Accords on behalf of the Republic of Türkiye on August 31, 2026, at a ceremony hosted by NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman at the Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters building in Washington, with Turkish Space Agency President Yusuf Kıraç and U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Space and Environment Connor Tomlinson also present. Türkiye became the 71st nation to sign. Isaacman said, "It is my privilege to welcome the Republic of Türkiye as the 71st signatory of the Artemis Accords," and noted NASA has invited every signatory to contribute hardware, payloads, technology demonstrations and CubeSats to future Artemis missions. Türkiye plans to send its first lunar spacecraft, AYAP-1, to the Moon in 2027 and will host the International Astronautical Congress in Antalya in October 2026.