Erdoğan meets with Trump, welcomes Iran-Israel truce

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan hailed the Iran-Israel ceasefire and urged “close dialogue” to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict, as he had talks with US President Donald Trump on the sidelines of a NATO summit late Tuesday.

The Turkish president “expressed his satisfaction with the ceasefire achieved between Israel and Iran through President Trump’s efforts, hoping it would be permanent,” his office said.

In the early hours of Tuesday, Trump announced that Iran and Israel had agreed to a staggered ceasefire that would bring about an “official end” to the 11-day conflict.

The move came after the US joined Israel’s campaign on Sunday, striking key nuclear sites, prompting a carefully coordinated Iranian retaliation against a US base in Qatar late Monday — which appeared to bring the confrontation to a close.

Erdoğan also stressed the need for Ankara and Washington to work closely to end the war in Gaza and the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

The Turkish president “emphasized the importance of close dialogue in ending the humanitarian tragedy in Gaza as soon as possible and in peacefully resolving the Russia-Ukraine war,” it said.

Erdoğan also called for increased defense industry cooperation with the United States, which he said could significantly boost trade between them.

“Advancing cooperation in the defense industry would facilitate achieving the goal of a $100 billion trade volume,” he said.

© Agence France-Presse