ANKARA (Reuters) -President Tayyip Erdogan told U.S. counterpart Donald Trump in a phone call on Friday that Turkey welcomed efforts to reach peace in the region, but that Israel must stop its attacks for efforts to be successful, the Turkish presidency said.
Erdogan and Trump met at the White House last month for the first time in six years, for a meeting that the Turkish leader said helped the NATO allies make “meaningful progress” on a range of issues.
In a statement, the presidency said the two had discussed bilateral ties in the call requested by the U.S. side, adding that Erdogan stressed the importance of taking steps to boost their cooperation, namely in the defence industry.
Erdogan also said that their meeting had strengthened ties, it added.
The two leaders also discussed the situation in Gaza, the presidency said, adding that Erdogan told Trump that Turkey was working hard to achieve regional peace and welcomed initiatives aimed at that goal.
“Erdogan emphasised that Turkey had increased its diplomatic contacts for peace, that it would continue to support (Trump’s) vision for global peace, and that Israel stopping its attacks is important for the success of initiatives aimed at achieving peace in the region,” it said.
Turkey, which has called Israel’s attacks on Gaza a genocide and halted all trade with Israel, has voiced support for Trump’s latest plan to end the war in Gaza.
(Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Editing by Alex Richardson)
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