Ankara, Turkey. Turkey sought to strengthen relations with the United States at a NATO summit in Ankara, where President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met President Donald Trump and received public praise from the U.S. leader. Trump also said he would drop sanctions imposed on Turkey during his first term and said he was willing to sell F-35 fighter jets to Ankara, though he later said he had not fully decided.
Summit diplomacy in Ankara
Turkey staged a red-white-and-blue air show and named a new airport building after Trump as it tried to elevate ties with Washington during the two-day NATO summit that ended on Wednesday.
Erdogan met Trump at the airport on Tuesday and then walked arm-in-arm with him. Erdogan later referred to Trump as his “dear friend” and, as the summit closed, said it was valuable that Trump had emphasised the importance he placed on their friendship.
“I thank my dear friend once again,” Erdogan said.
U.S.-Turkish relations
Trump promised to remove sanctions that he had imposed on Turkey during his first term as president six years ago, a period described as one of the darkest moments in U.S.-Turkish ties.
The relationship appeared to improve further during the summit. Trump repeatedly praised Erdogan, and the two leaders shared smiles, laughs and embraces while communicating through translators.
Trump also said he was willing to sell Turkey F-35 fighter jets, although he later said he had not totally made up his mind.
Attendance and NATO tensions
For many diplomats, Turkey’s main challenge had been ensuring that Trump would attend the annual gathering of NATO’s 32 leaders, even though he has not yet missed a summit.
Trump, who has long argued that NATO allies are not contributing enough, said he attended only because Erdogan was hosting the meeting. His presence was seen as a diplomatic success for Turkey, which wants to raise its standing within the alliance and address longstanding issues with Washington.
A day after his talks with Erdogan, Trump unsettled the summit on Wednesday by demanding that the United States cut trade ties with Spain and by repeating his claims on Greenland, drawing irritation from NATO ally Denmark.
He later said there had been love and “a lot of unity” at a leaders’ meeting, easing some concerns within the trans-Atlantic alliance over his criticism of NATO’s value.
Support for Erdogan
Sitting alongside NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Trump defended Erdogan against criticism from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Netanyahu had warned this week against selling F-35 fighter jets to Turkey.
