Erdoğan declares Turkey-US solidarity is critical: 'We will resolve the friction with Trump'

AKP Chairman and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made statements during his program in New York. President Erdoğan emphasized that he and US President Trump share a sincere friendship and stated that a mutual will has emerged to resolve certain points of friction.

Highlights from President Erdoğan's statements:

We observe that the Turkish community living in America is becoming increasingly visible in the social, political, economic, and academic life of this country. I want you to know that we take pride in your achievements, especially those of our friends present in this hall.

I congratulate each of you for your hard work, determination, and struggle. As a brother who has come to America on various occasions, I know this fact very clearly. You play very important roles through the bonds you have established between Turkey and America and the contributions you make to the economic and social life of your second home, America.

Furthermore, you act as a bridge in explaining our country, our culture, and our civilizational values to the American people. You know that we are always by your side in the work you carry out here and that we strive to support you through our representative offices and other institutions.

We will continue to support the Turkish-American community in every field, God willing. Dear friends, foreign policy is also affected by the profound changes taking place in the world. Foreign policy actors are no longer composed solely of states or representatives. Diaspora groups are just as influential.

As leading figures of the Turkish diaspora, you all have important responsibilities in this regard. It is very important for the Turkish-American community, whose population is approaching half a million, to take a greater role in the political arena at both local and federal levels, thereby increasing its level of representation. The current environment, where polarization exists in many areas from diplomacy to security, and from economy to technology, has made Turkey-America solidarity more critical and indispensable than ever before.

We continue our efforts to advance Turkish-American relations on the basis of alliance and strategic partnership. Cooperation between our countries is diversifying and deepening in many areas such as security, trade, investments, energy, and education.

''WE WILL DISCUSS CRITICAL ISSUES WITH TRUMP''

In President Trump's second term, our contacts with every level of the administration have begun to intensify, and the constructive dialogue between our institutions has gained momentum.

Thanks to the sincere friendship we have developed with Mr. Trump over the years, a mutual will has emerged to resolve some of the friction on our agenda. We are in constant consultation with both him and his team regarding developments in our region, primarily the Gaza crisis, the Russia-Ukraine war, and Syria.

Ambassador Mr. Barack has made and continues to make a significant contribution to this positive atmosphere with his sincere efforts.

Our will to increase our bilateral trade volume to 100 billion dollars and to increase our mutual investments is firm. God willing, we will meet with him in Washington D.C. on Thursday. We will have the opportunity to address many critical issues during our visit.

My dear citizens, my very valuable friends, as you know, especially in recent times, Islamophobia and cultural racism have reached worrying levels worldwide. Marginal ideas residing at the extremes of the political spectrum are able to reach wider audiences with the influence of social media.

News Source: 12punto