Did Erdoğan cancel his US trip? A call from Altaylı: 'Either deny it or confirm it'

Journalist Fatih Altaylı addressed the claims that the plan for President and AKP Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to visit the White House in the second week of May at the invitation of US President Joe Biden had been canceled, following the initial announcement of the visit.

"NEITHER DENIED NOR CONFIRMED"

Stating that he has begun receiving questions from experts on Turkish-American relations and even some AKP members, such as "Brother, there is a rumor that Tayyip Bey's US trip has been canceled, are you aware? Why did it happen?", Altaylı noted the following:

“Clearly, interesting things were happening in Ankara. Former US Ambassador to Ankara John Bass, who was on duty in Ankara during the coup attempt and was almost deported, had returned to Turkey this time as Under Secretary of State for Management and Acting Under Secretary for Political Affairs, and was holding meetings. A strange activity was noticeable at Incirlik; for some reason, Hamas was suddenly being compared to the Kuvayı Milliye (National Forces) of the Turkish War of Independence, and subsequently, Hamas leadership was being hosted in Turkey. But in the meantime, Mehmet Şimşek and Central Bank Governor Karahan were holding meetings with World Bank and IMF officials in the US. And right in the middle of all this, rumors were circulating that Erdoğan's US trip had been canceled, and it was being written about on serious news websites. And these reports were neither denied nor confirmed. No statement was made by the Communications Directorate, and no denial came from the Center for Combating Disinformation; there was no statement saying, 'Do not pay attention to the fake news of those who want to spoil our relations with our friend the US.'"

"JUST LIKE BEFORE THE INVASION OF IRAQ..."

According to some, Turkey was bargaining to gain economic benefits from the Israel-Iran tension, just like the money bargaining before the invasion of Iraq; according to others, the problem was deeper. And those who announced the US President's invitation as a great victory were silent about the new situation, and perhaps the news that 'he will not go' was being leaked intentionally. The developments very clearly showed that the great Republic of Turkey was being pushed toward a place somewhere between a banana republic and a tent state.”