In the context of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's contacts in New York, where he attended the 78th United Nations (UN) General Assembly, intense diplomatic meetings were held at the Turkevi Centre (Turkish House), which is located opposite the UN Headquarters.
On the first day, President Erdoğan received Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili of Georgia as part of his contacts. During the meeting, President Erdoğan emphasised the importance of completing the Middle Corridor and stated that the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway should be operational as soon as possible.
The meeting between President Erdoğan and President Abdelmadjid Tebboune of Algeria at the Turkevi focused on the political and economic relations between the two countries, as well as the tensions in Africa and the solutions proposed by the two countries. After the meeting, President Erdoğan shared a post on his social media account X and said, "We will continue to develop our cooperation with Algeria, with which we have deep-rooted ties, in every field."
President Erdoğan stated that they had the opportunity to discuss bilateral relations as well as regional issues when he met with President Andrzej Duda of Poland on the second day of his visit to New York.
"As always, we will remain one of the most active supporters of NATO missions"
As part of his contacts in New York, President Erdoğan met with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
Following the meeting, "We met with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on the margins of the UN 78th General Assembly and evaluated the regional and global issues on our agenda. As always, we will remain one of the most active supporters of NATO missions," President Erdoğan said in his statement.
13th address to the UN General Assembly
On the third day of his visit to New York, President Erdoğan delivered his address to the 13th UN General Assembly, which he had previously attended as prime minister and then as president, as the seventh speaker.
Türkiye's foreign policy, the earthquakes that epicentred in Kahramanmaraş on February 6, the Russia-Ukraine war, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), Azerbaijan's anti-terrorist operation in Karabakh, developments in Syria, and the fight against terrorism were all on President Erdoğan's agenda.
President Erdoğan emphasised his message about the UN structure once more in his speech, saying, "The world is bigger than five, a fairer world is possible." President Erdoğan's remarks were applauded in the General Assembly.
Cooperation areas on the agenda for the meeting with Netanyahu
Following his address to the UN General Assembly, President Erdoğan met with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel at the Turkevi Centre.
The meeting between President Erdoğan and Netanyahu focused on bilateral relations as well as the latest developments in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
President Erdoğan stated that Türkiye can cooperate with Israel in the fields of energy, technology, innovation, artificial intelligence, and cyber security, adding that they should all work together for a world where peace prevails.
In addition, President Erdoğan attended the reception hosted by President Joe Biden of the US and his spouse at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in honour of the heads of delegations and their spouses.
Meetings remain unabated on the final day
On the final day of his New York visit, President Erdoğan conferred with President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa and stated, "Türkiye will continue its close cooperation, partnership, and solidarity with the African Continent."
Intensive agenda items with Prime Minister Mitsotakis of Greece
President Erdoğan's New York meeting with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis of Greece had a packed agenda.
During their meeting, President Erdoğan and Prime Minister Mitsotakis reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining the present positive atmosphere in the relations between Türkiye and Greece.
In addition, they agreed to work together on the issue of migration, recognising that it is a challenge that impacts both nations and must be addressed as such.
In addition to confirming the road map and schedule for contacts between the two countries, the meeting established dates for the next meetings of the two countries' deputy foreign ministers in October, the meeting on confidence-building measures in November, and the Türkiye-Greece High-Level Cooperation Council Meeting on December 7.
Joint statement with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim of Malaysia
Following Mitsotakis, President Erdoğan received Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim of Malaysia.
President Erdoğan and Prime Minister Ibrahim issued a joint statement on "The Growing Acts of Hatred, Intolerance, Discrimination, and Violence Against Muslims and Their Sacreds."
"We strongly condemn recent incidents in some European countries in which copies of the Holy Quran were burned in the name of freedom of expression, as well as populist discourses that encourage abuse, hate speech, and aggression against Islam and Muslims," said the statement.
The two leaders called on all stakeholders, including governments, to intensify their efforts to combat discrimination, xenophobia, racism, and hate speech in accordance with international human rights standards.
Sincere talks with Elon Musk
During his visit to the US, President Erdoğan met with Turkish and American businesspeople and also hosted Elon Musk, the founder of Tesla and SpaceX, at the Türkevi.
Musk and his son were welcomed warmly at the reception.
During the meeting, President Erdoğan encouraged Musk to invest in Türkiye for the construction of Tesla's second European factory. Musk stated that they would like to cooperate with Turkish authorities to obtain the necessary licence to offer Starlink satellite services in Türkiye, noting that many Turkish suppliers are already working with Tesla and that Türkiye is among the most likely locations for the next facility.
Elon Musk added that he believes future wars will be fought between advanced UCAVs and that they are aware of the international interest in Bayraktar UAVs.
