Erdoğan-Trump summit in US press... Erdoğan wanted to persuade!

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and US President Donald Trump held a brief but critical meeting yesterday in The Hague, where they were attending the NATO Leaders Summit. The meeting, described as a "mini-summit," drew attention as it was the first face-to-face contact between Erdoğan and Trump during the latter's second presidential term.

Various topics were discussed during the meeting, primarily the defense industry, trade, and the future of NATO. It was learned that the two leaders evaluated mutual security concerns and economic cooperation.

One of the most striking analyses regarding the meeting came from the US-based media outlet Bloomberg. Bloomberg stated, "President Erdoğan aimed to turn a new page in the tense relations between the two countries by meeting with Trump on Tuesday evening as part of the NATO Summit."

The report noted that Erdoğan specifically tried to persuade Trump to lift the defense industry restrictions imposed on Turkey.

F-35 AND F-16 DEMAND ON THE AGENDA

Citing Turkish sources, the report shared information that Turkey wants to purchase 40 F-35 and 40 F-16 fighter jets from the US. It was also emphasized that Turkey has requested official permission from Washington to purchase GE Aerospace-produced F110 and F404 engines to be used in its domestically developed national combat aircraft KAAN and jet trainer aircraft Hürjet.

The Bloomberg analysis recalled that Turkey's past purchase of the S-400 air defense system from Russia and the US support for the YPG in Syria had severely strained relations between the two countries. Due to these tensions, Turkey was removed from the F-35 program and subjected to various sanctions in the defense industry.

It is claimed that an agreement was reached during the Erdoğan-Trump meeting to initiate certain technical contacts aimed at resolving these issues. Turkish diplomatic sources stated that "a positive ground has been formed toward normalizing relations."

The meeting evaluated not only bilateral relations but also the future of NATO and Turkey's strategic role within the alliance. According to presidential sources, Erdoğan conveyed to Trump that "Turkey is fulfilling its obligations within NATO and is ready to take steps that will increase the alliance's defense capacity."