Media reports say the White House could host President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as the latter works to secure a meeting with US President Donald Trump. The meeting could potentially take place by the end of April, Bloomberg News said on Tuesday, citing Turkish officials familiar with the matter.
Erdogan sees US-Turkey ties as crucial to regional stability, especially as Ankara seeks a greater role in mediating conflicts from Ukraine to Syria, the report added.
On Sunday, Erdogan spoke by phone with Trump, discussing efforts to end the war between Russia and Ukraine and restore stability in Syria. He told Trump that Turkey supported his "decisive and direct initiatives" to end the war between Russia and Ukraine and would continue to strive for a "just and lasting peace," the president's Communications Directorate said in a statement.
The president also expressed hope that Turkey's relations with the US will continue with a solution-oriented and sincere approach under the Trump administration. On counterterrorism, Erdogan said Ankara hopes the US will understand Turkey's interests in the fight against terrorism, in a thinly veiled reference to Washington's alliance with a terrorist group in Syria that threatens Turkey.
The Communications Directorate said the two men discussed bilateral relations as well as regional and global developments. He expressed support for Trump's decisive and direct initiatives aimed at ending the war between Russia and Ukraine, adding that Turkey has been committed to pursuing a just and lasting peace since the beginning of the conflict and will continue its efforts in this direction.
Turkey-US relations deteriorated under the administration of Joe Biden, who was expected to host Erdogan at the White House in April before the meeting was postponed first to May 2024 and then indefinitely, although the two leaders maintained telephone contact. (A2 Televizion)
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