Throughout 2022, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made 27 visits to 21 countries while maintaining close international contacts.
President Erdoğan, who conducted intense peace diplomacy and was the only leader who could meet both with President Vladimir Putin of Russia and President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine following the Ukraine-Russian War, played a significant role in the opening of the Grain Corridor, which is vital for the world's food supply.
Hosting many foreign leaders throughout the year, President Erdoğan made numerous visits within the country, with mass opening ceremonies.
International visits
Making his first international visit to Tirana, the capital of Albania, on January 17, upon the invitation of Prime Minister Edi Rama of Albania, President Erdoğan travelled to Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, on February 3, upon the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, for the 10th Meeting of the High-Level Strategic Council.
Paying an official visit to the United Arab Emirates on February 14 and 15, upon the invitation of Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President Erdoğan went to Dubai on the second day of his visit and met with Dubai Emir Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
On February 20, 21, and 22, President Erdoğan paid visits to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Senegal, respectively.
President Erdoğan, who went to Brussels, the capital of Belgium, on March 24 to attend the Extraordinary Summit of NATO Heads of State and Government, met with President Emmanuel Macron of France, Prime Minister Mario Draghi of Italy, Prime Minister Kaja Kallas of Estonia, and former Prime Minister Boris Johnson of the United Kingdom.
President Erdoğan, who went to Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, on March 29 and 30 for the second meeting of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council upon the invitation of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan, also visited Khiva, one of the important centres of Turkic Islamic history.
On April 28 and 29, President Erdoğan paid a visit to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, upon the invitation of King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
President Erdoğan, who went to the UAE on May 17 due to the passing of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, former President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), conveyed her condolences to Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the new President of the UAE.
On May 28, as part of the celebrations for Azerbaijan Independence Day, President Erdoğan attended the Distinguished Visitors Day of TEKNOFEST Azerbaijan Aerospace and Technology Festival in Baku and met with President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan.
NATO Summit
President Erdoğan, who went to Madrid, the capital of Spain, on June 28, 29, and 30 to attend the NATO Heads of State and Government Summit, attended quadripartite meeting with President Sauli Niinistö of Finland, Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson of Sweden, and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
President Erdoğan, who attended the "Ukraine" themed session as part of the Summit, met with President Joe Biden of the USA, President Macron of France, Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany, Prime Minister Rama of Albania, Chancellor Karl Nehammer of Austria, Prime Minister Mark Rutte of the Netherlands, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of Spain, former Prime Minister Johnson of the UK, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada, President Klaus Werner Iohannis of Romania, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, and President Charles Michel of the European Council.
President Erdoğan attended the seventh meeting of the Türkiye-Iran High-Level Cooperation Council while on an official visit to Tehran, Iran, from July 18 to 19, at the invitation of President Ebrahim Raisi of Iran.
Visits to Russia and Ukraine
Meeting with President Vladimir Putin of Russia in Sochi, Russia, on August 5, President Erdoğan paid a one-day working visit to Ukraine on August 18 and met with President Zelensky of Ukraine at the Pototsky Palace in Lviv.
During his Balkan tour in September, President Erdoğan visited Bosnia and Herzegovina on September 6, Serbia on September 7, and Croatia on September 8.
President Erdoğan attended the SCO Summit as a special guest
President Erdoğan went to Samarkand, Uzbekistan to attend the 22nd Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) as a special guest upon the invitation of President Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan. President Erdoğan met with Presidents Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan, Vladimir Putin of Russia, Xi Jinping of China, Ebrahim Raisi of Iran, Khaltmaagiin Battulga of Mongolia, Emomali Rahmon of Tajikistan, and Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus, in addition to Prime Ministers Shehbaz Sharif of Pakistan and Narendra Modi of India.
After concluding his contacts in Samarkand, President Erdoğan headed to the United States, where he remained from September 17 to September 22 to attend the 77th United Nations General Assembly. President Erdoğan met separately with US Senator Chris Coons, Head of the Presidency Council of Libya Mohamed al-Menfi, US Senator Lindsey Graham, Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council of Yemen Rashad Al-Alimi, President Alejandro Giammattei of Guatemala, Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili of Georgia, President of the World Jewish Congress (WJC) Ronald Lauder, Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany, UN Secretary-General António Guterres, as well as King Abdullah II of Jordan, Prime Minister Yair Lapid of Israel, President Gianni Infantino of FIFA, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan, President Van der Bellen of Austria, US Senator James Risch, Prime Minister Najib Mikati of Lebanon, Former Prime Minister Liz Truss of the UK, President Andrezj Duda of Poland and President Ersin Tatar of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).
September also saw a significant step in the Russia-Ukraine War thanks to the mediation of Türkiye.
In an interview with journalists at the Türkevi in New York at the conclusion of his visit to the US on September 22, President Erdoğan stated, "As a result of the diplomatic traffic I conducted with Mr Putin and Mr Zelensky, 200 prisoners of war were exchanged today between Russia and Ukraine."
The European Political Community meeting
On October 6, President Erdoğan went to Czechia to attend a meeting of the European Political Community. Ahead of the event, he spoke for some time with President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of Armenia. In addition, President Erdoğan met with President Rumen Radev of Bulgaria, President Emmanuel Macron of France, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of Spain, Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary, and Prime Minister Petr Fiala of Czechia, as well as President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen.
On October 12 and 13, President Erdoğan flew to Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, to attend the fourth meeting of the Türkiye-Kazakhstan High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council and the Sixth Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA), and met with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan, President Vladimir Putin of Russia, President Aleksandr Lukashenko of Belarus, and Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan of Vietnam.
At the invitation of President Aliyev, President Erdoğan visited Azerbaijan on October 20 to attend the opening ceremony of Zangilan International Airport, the second airport built on Azerbaijan's liberated territory with contributions from Turkish companies, and the opening ceremony of the first phase of the Dost Agropark Zengilan Smart Agriculture Village.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who was in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, for the Ninth Summit of the Heads of State of the Organisation of Turkic States, was presented with the High-Level Imam al-Bukhari Order by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan.
President Erdoğan was also awarded the Supreme Order of Turkic World in recognition of his services to the Turkic world in Samarkand, where he also held bilateral talks with Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary, President of Halk Maslahaty (People's Council), and Former President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov of Turkmenistan.
During the summit, the Organisation of Turkic States admitted the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) as an observer member.
President Erdoğan attended at both the opening and closing ceremonies of the World Cup
President Erdoğan, who attended the 17th G20 Leaders’ Summit on November 15 and 16 in Bali, Indonesia, held bilateral talks with President Joko Widodo of Indonesia, President Joe Biden of the US, President Emmanuel Macron of France, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy, and Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany.
President Erdoğan attended seven international meetings this year, including the G-20 summit.
President Erdoğan attended the 2022 FIFA World Cup Opening Ceremony in Doha on November 20, upon the invitation of Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of Qatar.
President Erdoğan met with Chairman of the Halk Maslakhaty Milli Gengesh of Turkmenistan and former President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov, and President of Azerbaijan Aliyev during his visit to Turkmenistan on December 13-14 for the Summit of Heads of State of Türkiye-Azerbaijan-Turkmenistan.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan attended the FIFA World Cup 2022 Closing Ceremony with the other visiting Heads of State and Government in Doha at the invitation of Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani of Qatar on December 18.
Received guests
President Erdoğan hosted a number of heads of state and government in 2022.
On January 12, President Erdoğan welcomed Prime Minister Faiz Sucuoğlu of TRNC as his first visitor. President Erdoğan hosted President Aleksandar Vucic of Serbia in the Presidential Complex on January 18 and President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador on January 20.
President Erdoğan met with Prime Minister Najib Mikati of Lebanon on February 1, President Nechirvan Barzani of the Iraqi Kurdish Regional Government (IKRG) on February 2, and Speaker of the Council of Representatives of Iraq Mohamed Al-Halbousi and Head of the Azim Alliance of Iraq Khamis al-Khanjar on February 26 after resting from February 5 to 10 due to a positive Covid 19 test.
Spending March with heavy meeting traffic, President Erdoğan met with President Vjosa Osmani-Sadriu of Kosovo, who paid an official visit to Türkiye on March 1.
First visit from Israel in 14 years
Türkiye was home to a historic visit in March. President Isaac Herzog of Israel, who paid an official visit on March 9, became the first Israeli leader to visit Türkiye since 2008.
President Erdoğan met with President Aliyev of Azerbaijan at a working dinner at the Çankaya Mansion on March 10. During the meeting, the relations between the two countries and the Russia-Ukraine War were discussed.
Antalya Diplomacy Forum
Antalya Diplomacy Forum was held with the attendance of President Erdoğan on March 11-12, with participants from 75 countries, including 17 heads of state and government and 80 ministers.
Receiving Prime Minister Rama of Albania, Prime Minister Kiril Petkov of Bulgaria, NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg, President Nechirvan Barzani of IKRG as part of the Forum, President Erdoğan, met with the Founding President of Kazakhstan Elbasy Nursultan Nazarbayev, President Borut Pahor of Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina Presidential Council Members Sefik Dzaferovic and Milorad Dodik, President Umaro Sissoco Embalo of Guinea-Bissau, President Mohamed Bazoum of Niger, President Julius Maada Bio of Sierra Leone and President George Manneh Weah of Liberia.
On March 13, after receiving Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis of Greece in the Vahdettin Mansion, President Erdoğan hosted Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany, who paid an official visit to Türkiye at the Presidential Complex.
On March 16, after meeting with President Andrzej Duda of Poland at the Çankaya Mansion, President Erdoğan met with Prime Minister Kim Boo-Kyum of the Republic of Korea at the bridge's construction site in Lapseki, who came to Türkiye on March 18 to attend the opening ceremony of the 1915 Çanakkale Bridge.
President Erdoğan held his last meeting in March with Prime Minister Rutte of the Netherlands on March 22 at the Presidential Complex.
President Erdoğan received IKRG Prime Minister Masrour Barzani on April 15 in the Dolmabahçe Working Office and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on April 25 at the Presidential Complex.
President Erdoğan hosted President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan at the Presidential Complex on May 10 and Emir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani of Qatar at the Vahdettin Mansion on May 13. On May 14, President Erdoğan inaugurated the Rize-Artvin Airport with President Aliyev of Azerbaijan.
On May 16, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune of Algeria paid a visit to Türkiye, while President Iván Duque Márquez of Colombia paid a visit to Türkiye on May 20.
Receiving Prime Minister Ünal Üstel of TRNC on May 31, President Erdoğan hosted Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif of Pakistan and President Nicolás Maduro Moros of Venezuela, as well as Prime Minister Dimitar Kovacevski of North Macedonia, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia and President of the National Council of Austria Wolfgang Sobotka in June.
While Prime Minister Draghi of Italy, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of Somalia and Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob of Malaysia paid an official visit to Türkiye in July, President Erdoğan also received Bashkan Irina Vlah of the Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia.
President Erdoğan met with President Aliyev of Azerbaijan, who came to Konya for the 5th Islamic Solidarity Games Opening Ceremony on August 9, at the Konya Metropolitan Municipality Stadium.
President Erdoğan met with President Pahor of Slovenia, who paid an official visit to Türkiye on August 10, and also received Prime Minister Rama of Albania on the same day.
In August, President Erdoğan hosted three more guests. On August 16, King of Malaysia Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah Ibni Almarhum Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah Al-Musta'in Billah, on August 17, Chairman of the High Council of State of Libya Khalid al-Mishri and on August 23 President Abbas of Palestine paid a visit to Türkiye.
President Erdoğan met with President Sadyr Japarov of Kyrgyzstan and President Ersin Tatar of TRNC, both of whom were in İznik for the 4th World Nomad Games, as well as President Denis Sassou N'Guesso of the Republic of the Congo and Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh of the Government of National Unity of Libya.
Receiving Prime Minister Rama of Albania on October 11, President Erdoğan met Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani of Qatar on October 14 at the Dolmabahçe Working Office. President Erdoğan received the Head of the Administration of President of Uzbekistan Sardor Umurzakov on October 25 and former Prime Minister Saad Hariri of Lebanon on October 28 at the Presidential Complex.
President Erdoğan received NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg, who paid an official visit to Türkiye, at the Dolmabahçe Working Office on November 4, while Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson of Sweden was one of the notable guests in November. During the visit on November 8, Sweden's NATO membership was discussed.
President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez of Cuba paid an official visit to Türkiye on November 23, and President Erdoğan received Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif of Pakistan on November 25 and Secretary General Hissein Brahim Taha of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation on November 28.
President Erdoğan welcomed six guests in December. On December 9, President Erdoğan received Prime Minister Rama of Albania, who attended TRT World Forum 2022 and met with President Rumen Radev of Bulgaria. Meeting with President Vezhdi Rashidov of the National Assembly of Bulgaria at Atatürk Airport State Guesthouse on December 20, President Erdoğan hosted President Macky Sall of Senegal, who paid an official visit to Türkiye, at the Presidential Complex on December 21.
The last guest of President Erdoğan, who received Speaker Abdullah Mohammed Al-Sheikh of the Saudi Shura Council of Saudi Arabia on December 26, was President Milo Djukanovic of Montenegro.
Carrying out intense diplomatic traffic, President Erdoğan held nearly 200 phone calls with world leaders, including President Biden of the United States, President Putin of Russia, President Zelensky of Ukraine, President Macron of France, and King Charles III of the United Kingdom.
Due to the Russia-Ukraine War, President Erdoğan's most frequent phone calls were with Zelensky and Putin. President Erdoğan, who had 16 phone conversations with both leaders, negotiated on the grain corridor, prisoner exchange and ending the war.
President Erdoğan made 40 visits to 35 cities besides Ankara and İstanbul and participated in mass opening ceremonies as well as international organisations.