Ankara (Times Of Ocean)- The Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday stressed the importance of NATO for the security of Europe in the midst of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.
“NATO is the cornerstone of European security. We have seen this very clearly. Turkiye is an indispensable ally for ensuring regional security,” Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters during his return flight from Brussels where he attended an extraordinary NATO summit on Thursday.
“Turkey will continue to play an important role in shaping NATO’s future through these summits,” said Erdogan.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan called Turkey an indispensable ally in ensuring regional security.
“Turkey has made great efforts since the beginning to end the ongoing war in Ukraine,” he said.
The president, outlining the NATO summit as “fruitful and successful” in every respect, said Turkiye approved of the decision to extend the mandate of alliance chief Jens Stoltenberg for another year due to Russia’s war on Ukraine.
NATO’s heads of state and government met in Brussels on Thursday to discuss the alliance’s response to Russia’s war on Ukraine.
NATO’s long-term strategy in Eastern Europe was also discussed, as was its response to Russia’s war on Ukraine, which entered its second month on Thursday.
On the French president’s “NATO is brain dead” comments, Erdogan said: “That was an unfortunate statement. President [Emanuel] Macron is one of the most active leaders in NATO.”
It is expected that he will meet with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday and hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin this weekend or early next week to assess the results of Thursday’s NATO summit.
“Amid war, many big companies are leaving Russia, and Turkiye’s doors are wide open,” said Erdogan.
Assuaging concerns about food shortages during Ramadan, he said: “We’ve taken all kinds of measures to ensure food security.”
Talks with US on F-16 jets
Regarding the F-16 jets, he said the US is showing a positive approach to modernizing aircraft and purchasing new fighter jets.
Erdogan said President Biden told him that he would present a positive approach to the Congress on F-16 fighter jets and will follow the issue.
Turkish President Erdogan also reaffirmed Turkey’s position on the S-400 air defense systems.