Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday that Turkey protects the borders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) by protecting its borders, pointing to the priority of discussing Turkish-American relations in his first meeting with US President Joe Biden, on the sidelines of their participation in a summit NATO leaders, to be held tomorrow in the Belgian capital (Brussels).
“We are participating in an important summit in which decisions will be taken on NATO’s Vision 2030, and define the alliance’s roadmap for the next ten years,” Erdogan said at a press conference at Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport. Read also I entered a zigzag… 4 issues that determine the compass of the Biden administration’s relations with Turkey Biden recognizes the “genocide” of the Armenians in the Ottoman era, and Turkey condemns and refuses to receive lessons about its history
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He referred to his planned meeting with his American counterpart, saying, “It will be our first direct meeting with Biden after taking office, and we should primarily discuss Turkish-American relations.”
He stressed that he will discuss with Biden a lot of issues, expressing his aspiration to see an unconditional approach from the United States that strengthens NATO and its solidarity.
He said that there are many issues on the table with the United States regarding defense industries, the most important of which is the F-35 fighter file.
Erdogan expressed his regret that the United States did not fulfill its commitments regarding the F-35 fighters, despite Turkey fulfilling its obligations in this regard, he said.
Regarding Biden’s characterization of the events of 1915 as a “genocide” against the Armenians, Erdogan expressed his country’s dissatisfaction, and said, “This approach greatly disturbed us, and it must be addressed (during the meeting with Biden).”
It is noteworthy that Erdogan’s relationship with Biden – when the latter was vice president under Barack Obama – witnessed tensions at several stations.
After the NATO summit, Erdogan is scheduled to visit Azerbaijan on June 15-16, at the invitation of his counterpart Ilham Aliyev.