President Tayyip Erdogan had three important meetings on the sidelines of the NATO Summit in Washington. First with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, where the Turkish president reportedly stated that Turkey continues its efforts to develop a spirit of solidarity with Greece based on the principle of good neighborliness and that these efforts will continue to increase.

Then with Georgia Meloni, with whom they discussed bilateral regional and international issues. Interestingly, this was the seventh time the Turkish president has met the Italian prime minister since she took office 21 months ago, more times than any other leader. During their meeting yesterday, Erdogan said that the relations between the two countries will continue to develop. Finally, the Turkish president met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, with whom they discussed Turkey-Germany bilateral relations, the Ukraine-Russia war and Israel’s attacks on Gaza. Erdogan urged his interlocutor not to miss the opportunity for a cease-fire in Gaza, but also referred to the “new breath” he said Germany is expected to give to Turkey’s EU accession process, an issue he is determined to push forward. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency.

The 2026 summit is in Turkey

In general, Ankara appears pleased with the NATO Summit, as the Alliance’s targeting satisfies Turkey’s basic demands. Firstly, it was decided that the upcoming NATO Summit in 2026 will be held in Turkey and secondly, to increase the contribution and strengthen the strategy of NATO in the fight against terrorism, which is a priority for Turkey. In addition, the decision taken at the Vilnius summit that the allies should not impose sanctions on each other was confirmed, which is also a priority for Turkey. In the context of NATO-EU relations, it was decided to cooperate between the two organizations, so as to develop joint projects in accordance with the NATO defense planning process. This was a decision in line with Turkey’s view that NATO is the only security umbrella.

As far as the open war fronts are concerned, Ankara promotes peaceful solutions so that the pro-government press circulates today with headlines such as “Turkey is an essential player for peace”.