Trump, Erdogan Discuss Common Ground on Syria, Trade

Discussions between the U.S. and Turkish Presidents on Wednesday dominated by Syria and Ankara's purchase of Russia's S-400s, TURAN's correspondent reports from the White House.

Despite the warm welcome in Washington D.C., two NATO allies have been at odds for months over a host of issues that have sent relations plummeting to historic lows.

However, speaking before reporters at the White House, Trump praised Turkey’s participation in a global fight against terrorism, including some assistance Turkey provided to the operation to kill ISIS terrorist leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

Erdogan's, in his turn, noted that his country has captured thousands of ISIS terrorists, including over 1,200 still incarcerated in Turkey.

He also expressed his support towards a plan to boost trade between the two countries to $100 billion, nearly four times current levels.

As for Washington's concerns about Turkey’s purchase of the Russian S-400 missile defense system, both presidents reinstated a commitment to continue talks on the matter.

However, the White House made it clear that in order to make progress on other issues battering bilateral relations it was vital to resolve the S-400 issue.

The issue, Erdogan said, should be overcome "only through dialogue".

He also noted that the recent House-passed measure on the 1915 events has the potential to cast a “deep shadow over our bilateral relations,” adding that decisionmakers about an event 104 years ago should be historians, not politicians.

Alex Raufoglu

Washington D.C.