OR Turkey expects that the president of the United States, Donald Trumpwill “attend” its Summit NATO which will take place in Ankara in July.
“From what we know, he plans to attend,” said Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in an interview with Bloomberg TV. He even mentioned that Donald Trump and Tayyip Erdogan had a telephone conversation “several times in the last month” and in each of them the American president hinted that he would attend.
Critical session
Turkey will host NATO leaders on July 7 and 8, at a time when concerns are intensifying about Washington’s long-term commitment to European security.
Despite Trump’s statements, the US remains committed to the Alliance and there are no signs that it intends to follow through on warnings to withdraw from NATO, Fidan argued.
“The US has consistently pressured its allies to increase defense spending and take greater responsibility for their security,” he said and added: “The Europeans have received the message and have already made moves to boost their defense budgets. When the leaders meet, we will assess the progress that has been made.”
Trump, who has repeatedly questioned the value of NATO, has criticized European allies for not supporting the US campaign against Iran, or efforts to restore navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
US-Iran and Israel talks
Regarding the war in Iran, Hakan Fidan said that Turkey is helping negotiations between Tehran and Washington, adding that both sides they are making “sincere” efforts to maintain the truce.
However, he argued, an escalation of the Israeli military operation in Lebanon could derail the talks.
Iran said on Monday it was “freezing” negotiations with the US over Israel’s actions in Lebanon and threatened further blockades of shipping and strikes against Israel.
Trump spoke by phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and spoke with Hezbollah representatives, saying the two sides had agreed to a cessation of hostilities.
“I am sure that the Americans and the Iranians are acting with sincerity. They want the ceasefire to be maintained and the Straits of Hormuz to be reopened. But I’m not sure about Israel’s intentions.” Fidan concluded.
