The U.S. president hails ‘good relationship’ with Turkish counterpart while calling on Ankara to stop buying Russian oil.
U.S. President Donald Trump hosted Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the White House on Sept. 25, where the two leaders spoke for more than two hours.
Although discussions were held largely behind closed doors, Tom Barrack, Washington’s envoy to Turkey, described the talks as “historic,” according to state-run news agency Anadolu Agency.
“It was better than great,” Barrack said after the meeting. “Two amazing leaders … had a real understanding and respect for each other.”
According to geopolitical analyst Ana Maria Evans, the meeting underlined the “critical geopolitical significance of Turkey, which sits at the crossroads of the Middle East, the Caucasus region, the Mediterranean, and the Black Sea.”
“As such, President Erdogan can play a pivotal role in Eurasian security and influence the geopolitics of the Middle East,” Evans, a professor at Lisbon’s Catholic University, told The Epoch Times.
At a joint press conference that preceded the talks, Trump highlighted his “very good relationship” with the Turkish leader.
“We’ve had tremendous relationships, both having to do with war and … trade,” he said. “Today, we’re talking about both.”
“I’d like to have him stop buying oil from Russia while Russia continues this rampage against Ukraine,” Trump added.
Erdogan, for his part, said that, under Trump, U.S.–Turkey relations had been brought to a “different level.”
After the talks concluded, Trump described them as “very conclusive.”
Asked if he thought Ankara would stop buying Russian oil, the U.S. president said: “I believe [Erdogan] will stop it … because he can buy it from a lot of other people.”
Speaking to journalists on his return flight to Turkey, Erdogan did not mention the issue of Russian oil.
According to Ilhan Uzgel, foreign-policy coordinator for the Republican People’s Party, Turkey’s main opposition party, such a request by Trump would put Erdogan “in a difficult position.”
“If Turkey continues buying Russian oil, this will anger Trump,” Uzgel told The Epoch Times. “But if it stops, this will cause serious frictions with Russia, with which Turkey has already signed purchase agreements.”
“Turkey desperately needs cheap energy because inflation is already high,” he said, noting that Turkey depends on Russian oil for roughly 40 percent of its energy needs.
Evans agreed.
