Turkish President Recept Tayyip Erdogan has sought to position his country as a key to stability in an increasingly turbulent world, saying that Turkey is essential to Europe’s security.
Erdogan also said Turkey could span Ukraine, Syria and the geopolitical sector across the recent wave of US tariffs that sparked the world trade war.
Speaking at the annual Antary Diplomatic Forum, the Turkish president faces chaos at his home due to protests over the imprisonment of his main political rival, Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamor.
“It has once again become clear that European security cannot be thought of without turkeys. Turkey is ready to take responsibility for European security in the future,” he said at the opening of the three-day gathering.
With transatlantic relations cool under the Trump administration, Turkey, a NATO member with the second-largest alliance military and well-developed defense industry, is looking for a wider role.
The White House warns that the continent must take care of its own security, including Ukraine, indicating that it has not shown any willingness to support the majority of Ukraine’s European troops in the face of Russian hostility.
Turkey has emerged as a major broker in the Black Sea region, maintaining ties with both Ukraine and Russia. Erdogan and Trump talk about their close personal relationship.
“We believe our relationship with the United States will flourish in all areas during President Trump’s second term, and with the contribution of his intimate friendship with him,” the Turkish president told an audience of world leaders and diplomats.
Turning to Trump’s tariffs, Erdogan has curtailed the possibility of a positive outcome for Türkiye placed within the baseline 10% tariff.
“We are doing our best to prevent the fierce commercial competition over customs duties from becoming destructive,” Erdogan said. “Turkey will be one of the winners of this process.”
Turkey is also an influential actor in neighbouring Syria, a rebel group supported during the Civil War last December.
But the collapse of longtime President Bashar al-Assad has aggravated already tense relations between Turkey and Israel, and their opposing interests push the relationship towards a conflict course.
When Trump hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington last month, he advised him to be “rational” in his deal with Ankara.
“We are in a state of close dialogue with understanding and influential actors of the region, particularly Trump and Putin, to maintain the integrity of Syrian territory,” Erdogan told Antalia’s forum.
Syrian new president, Ahmed Alshara, sat in just two places from Erdogan.
In an obvious warning, Erdogan said, “No one should misunderstand our attitude of solving problems through our calmness and dialogue.”
The president, a voice critic of Israel’s military operations in Gaza, also focused on the killing of civilians in the enclave.
“Even if it’s at war, does a legal state behave like this? Isn’t this called state terrorism? That’s why Israel is a terrorist state,” Erdogan argued.
