By Tom O’Connor* – Newsweek
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan offered Newsweek an exclusive written interview ahead of his appearance at the NATO summit in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. Newsweek
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused U.S. President Joe Biden and his administration of complicity in atrocities in Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip and rounded on the United States and other NATO allies he said had “fueled the fire” of war in Ukraine.
Erdogan made his comments, some of his strongest criticism of the Biden administration to date over the conflicts, in response to written questions from Newsweek as he arrived in Washington, D.C. to attend a NATO summit at a pivotal time for the international order.
Erdogan, who has led the nation formally known as Türkiye for more than two decades and is widely considered to be its most powerful leader since founding father Mustafa Kamal Atatürk, is in a unique position geographically and geopolitically among fellow NATO leaders. Not only does Turkey constitute the U.S.-led alliance’s second largest military but the nation straddling Europe and Asia finds itself flanked by two major conflicts raging in Ukraine and Gaza.
But as the Biden administration seeks NATO unity in attempting to bring about Russia’s defeat in Ukraine and offers staunch support for Israel’s offensive against Hamas and a coalition of Iran-aligned forces across the region, Erdogan has a different outlook. He accuses Western allies of fanning the flames of war in Ukraine and Biden, in particular, of complicity in human rights violations in Gaza.
The exclusive comments come as Erdogan is also increasingly looking to diversify Turkey’s international ties by building closer relations with emerging blocs in the East. And while the Turkish leader affirms his commitment to further develop ties with Washington, he made clear that Ankara’s concerns could no longer be ignored.
Newsweek: You’re in DC now attending this NATO summit at a critical time for the alliance with serious questions emerging over the future of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. As the second-largest military in the alliance and the only member in the Middle East, what is your message today on behalf of Türkiye?
Erdogan: Türkiye is an important member of NATO and actively contributes to the alliance’s operations and missions. Our primary objectives are to fortify our solidarity with our NATO allies and to find sustainable solutions to the challenges that confront the world and our region, utilizing common sense. In a changing world, new problems emerge with each passing day. Thus, we believe that NATO must be prepared, determined, and strong.
As we consistently underscore at NATO meetings, terrorism is one of the most critical global issues. We are a country that has taken on the mission of fighting terrorist organizations without discrimination and has actively demonstrated this in the field. Our main expectation from our allies is that they will adopt a similar counter-terrorism approach.
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*Senior Writer, Foreign Policy & Deputy Editor, National Security and Foreign Policy