President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan departed the White House following his meeting with President Donald Trump of the US.
Following the tête-à-tête and working lunch with their delegations at the Oval Office, President Trump of the US accompanied President Erdoğan to the door as he departed.
After the 2-hour and 20-minute meeting at the White House, Trump spoke briefly with President Erdoğan at the doorway, shook hands, and waved farewell as President Erdoğan got into his official vehicle.
President Trump also shook hands with each member of President Erdoğan's delegation and saw them off.
When asked by reporters how the meeting went, Trump responded, "It was a great meeting."
Remarking that it was a great honour for him to host President Erdoğan at the White House, President Trump of the US said, " He is a highly respected figure. He is respected in his country and throughout Europe and the world."
President Trump of the US addressed journalists' questions in the Oval Office prior to his meeting with President Erdoğan, whom he was hosting at the White House.
Trump highlighted his longstanding friendship with Erdoğan, stating, "He is a highly respected figure; he is greatly respected in his country, throughout Europe, and across the world."
Noting that Türkiye has "built a tremendous military," Trump said, "It is an honour to have him at the White House."
Noting that they were scheduled to continue their discussions over a working lunch following the Oval Office meeting, President Trump of the US stated, "We are going to have a big discussion today. We do a lot of trade with Türkiye, and we are going to continue. We are going to do some additional trade. They want to buy F-16s, F-35s, and some other things, and we are going to talk to them about that."
Trump noted that their talks would centre on key issues in the Turkish-American relationship and, speaking of President Erdoğan, remarked, "He is a tough and opinionated man. Usually, I do not like opinionated people, but I have always liked him. He is a tough man, and he does an amazing job in his country. We have had tremendous relationships, both having to do with war and trade. I guess today we are going to talk about both."
Trump emphasised their high-volume trade with Türkiye, saying, "Türkiye builds great products. We buy a lot from them, and they buy a lot from us."
"We are close to getting a deal done (on Gaza)"
Trump also informed reporters that he had a productive meeting with President Erdoğan and other leaders on the margins of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, saying, "I think we are close to getting some kind of a deal done."
Trump expressed his wish for a resolution to the Gaza crisis and the release of all hostages, noting, 'We had a very good meeting with representatives from Middle Eastern countries. We want to get all the hostages back. I think we are close to reaching a deal." Noting his meaningful engagements with Türkiye, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and other countries in the region, Trump expressed hope to reach a concrete solution for Gaza in a subsequent meeting with Israel.
"Erdoğan was responsible for the victory in Syria"
Stating that he lifted sanctions on Syria at the request of President Erdoğan, Trump said, "Erdoğan was responsible for the victory in Syria. It was a victory for Türkiye." Trump emphasised, "President Erdoğan is the one responsible for the success of the efforts to topple the former leader in Syria.
The US President made the following remarks about Türkiye's role in the developments in Syria:
"They have been trying to do it for 2000 years. He (Erdoğan) did it. I mean, they are your surrogates. I think you should take the credit for it. I lifted the sanctions to give Syria some breathing space, since they were too heavy.” He (Erdoğan) was responsible for that victory. It was a victory for Türkiye. He is responsible for that, so he would have a lot to say with respect to Syria. However, I lifted the sanctions at Erdoğan's request. I also took the sanctions off at the request of the King of Saudi Arabia. And Qatar said it would be good if you could lift the sanctions. We had very heavy sanctions. They could not have lived with those sanctions. And I took them off to give them a chance for some breathing space. But Mr President (Erdoğan) was one of the people responsible for that."
F-35s on the agenda
When asked about the refusal of previous US administrations to sell Patriot missiles to Türkiye and the F-35s, Trump said, "We will discuss that. We are going to discuss the F-35. I know he wants the F-35, and we are talking about that very seriously. He needs certain things, and we need certain things. We are going to come to a conclusion. You will know by the end of the day."
The US President, regarding his contributions to the peace process between Azerbaijan and Armenia and the role of Türkiye, said, "Erdoğan has tremendous influence in the region."
CAATSA sanctions on Türkiye may be lifted
In response to a question about when the CAATSA sanctions on Türkiye will be lifted, Trump said, "It could be very soon. We will have a meeting on that shortly," signalling that sanctions could be lifted.
In response to a question about the Russia-Ukraine War concerning the vulnerability of the airspaces of NATO member states and the possibilities for cooperation between the USA and Türkiye on this matter, Trump said that NATO states need to increase their defence spending and strengthen cooperation.
When asked about the course of the war between Russia and Ukraine, Trump replied, "President Erdoğan is very respected by both of them (President Vladimir Putin of Russia and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine). Everybody respects Erdoğan. They really respect Erdoğan. I do. And I think he could have a big influence if he wants to. Right now, he is very neutral. He likes being neutral. So do I. I like being neutral. If he gets involved, the best thing he could do would be not to buy oil and gas from Russia."
The meeting was also attended by Hakan Fidan, the Minister of Foreign Affairs; Yaşar Güler, the Minister of National Defence; Alparslan Bayraktar, the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources; İbrahim Kalın, the Director of the National Intelligence Organisation; Akif Çağatay Kılıç, the Chief Advisor to the President on Foreign Policy and Security; as well as Türkiye's Ambassador to Washington, Sedat Önal.
