When US President Donald Trump described Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as someone he had a great relationship with, many political pundits didn’t know what to make of the remarks.
“I like him, and he likes me. We’ve never had a problem,” Trump said with a raised smile as he spoke to reporters in the Oval Office.
What stunned observers the most is that Trump made the comments whilst sat next to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Netanyahu was in Washington to talk tariffs, the war on Gaza and Iran; but was also seeking Trump’s support in order to persuade Erdogan to change course in Syria.
Ankara seeks to establish three military bases in the country, and one of them – the T4 base near Palmyra in eastern Syria – has particularly concerned Israeli officials.
Meanwhile, Israel wants to maintain its control over Syrian airspace, and the deployment of Turkish forces along with aerial defense systems at that base could prevent Netanyahu and his allies from freely operating their fighter jets in the region.
Even after Netanyahu requested his help, Trump said he could only intervene if the Israeli Prime Minister was being reasonable in his demands.
Trump added that Erdogan had effectively taken over Syria, calling him a smart guy: “I said, ‘Congratulations, you’ve done what nobody’s been able to do in 2,000 years’.”
Mutual respect
Although Erdogan and Trump have had several ups and downs since the US president’s first term, both appear to hold each other in high regard.
For those familiar with Trump, Erdogan is not far removed from some of the former US President’s ideological leanings.
Trump believes in “America First” nativism, distrusts international organisations, is sceptical of NATO and the European Union, and prefers working with other strongmen such as Hungary’s Viktor Orban or Russia’s Vladimir Putin.
Erdogan shares similar views.
The two leaders also promote conservative values, oppose abortion and transgender movements, and run populist campaigns focused on government spending and interest rates.
Neither is considered a democrat in a traditional sense.
Of course, the two countries have very different histories, political systems, and contexts – but Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan believes there are clear reasons why Trump likes Erdogan, one of them being their shared fight against the establishment.
“He probably sees a similarity between himself and our President – both leaders are people who have reached their positions and strive to stay there by overcoming many problematic areas and opposition, both domestically and internationally,” Fidan said.
“Trump’s appreciation of our president is actually a sign of his respect and admiration for success. Our president also admires him – he supports some of Trump’s efforts, struggles, and especially his political stance on domestic issues like family and spirituality,” he added.
Many observers point out that Trump and Erdogan, despite their mutual admiration, have had crises in the past – for example, in 2019 when Erdogan refused to hand over Pastor Andrew Brunson, a US citizen.
“As I have stated strongly before, and just to reiterate: if Turkey does anything that I, in my great and unmatched wisdom, consider to be off limits, I will totally destroy and obliterate the Economy of Turkey (I’ve done it before!). They must, with Europe and others, watch over,” Trump said at the time.
But beyond all other factors, many believe Trump likes Erdogan primarily because he sees him as someone he can make deals with.
In the past, Erdogan used several intermediaries to lobby the Trump White House, including Trump’s business partner in Turkey, Mehmet Ali Yalcindag. He also sent his son-in-law, then-Finance Minister Berat Albayrak, to build ties with Trump’s own son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who was highly influential during Trump’s first term.
According to two separate sources, both Kushner and Trump pushed several administration officials – including Special Envoy Richard Grenell and Secretary of State Marco Rubio – to change their stance on Erdogan telling them, “Erdogan is our guy.”
Why?
“Because you can make a deal with Erdogan, and he’ll accept it, honour it, and deliver,” one of the sources said.
Not surprising, considering the fact that Trump’s selling point has always been that, as his famous book “Art of the Deal” indicates.
Indeed, Erdogan understands the importance of political theatrics. He did not hesitate to voice support when there was an assassination attempt on Trump’s life in 2024. And during their first phone call last month, Erdogan didn’t even mention Israel not to anger him – despite Ankara publicly accusing Netanyahu of committing genocide in Gaza.
One must always be prepared for possible diplomatic clashes in the future, but for now, Erdogan seems to know exactly how to approach his “good friend” in the White House.
Worth mentioning
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Turkey and Israel have held talks over the establishment of a deconfliction line in Syria to avoid any misunderstandings and prevent potential clashes between their militaries, two western officials have told Middle East Eye.
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Netanyahu has been lobbying US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to block the sale of F-35 warplanes to Turkey, citing concerns over Ankara’s growing influence in Syria.
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Fidan has said that Ankara is ready to purchase $40bn worth of spare parts, ammunition and electronics for its military if the US lifts sanctions over Turkey’s acquisition of Russian S-400 missile systems.
Turkey Bureau Chief
Middle East Eye
