The presidents of the United States and Turkey, Joe Biden and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, respectively, held a meeting on Tuesday on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Indonesia to discuss bilateral relations, amid renewed tensions after Ankara rejected Washington’s condolences for Sunday’s attack in the city of Istanbul.
Biden has conveyed to his Turkish counterpart his «deep condolences» for the «acts of violence in Istanbul» and reiterated U.S. support for Turkey, «an ally in NATO,» according to a statement released by the White House after the meeting. He has also conveyed to Erdogan his appreciation for Ankara’s efforts to extend the agreement allowing the export of grain from Ukrainian ports.
Thus, the White House has emphasized that both leaders «have agreed» that this agreement on grain «has been crucial to improve food security globally in the midst of the war launched by Russia.» «Both have discussed maintaining close coordination on NATO issues and other issues of regional and global concern,» it has concluded.
Turkey’s presidency has limited itself to confirming the meeting, without giving further details. «President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has met with US President Joe Biden on the sidelines of the G20 leaders’ summit in Bali, Indonesia,» it said in a message on its Twitter account along with a photo of the two.
The meeting comes a day after Ankara refused to compare U.S. condolences following the Istanbul attack to «the murderer who is the first to appear at the scene of the crime.» Ankara has in the past accused the U.S. for its support for the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) as part of its fight against the Islamic State jihadist group in Syria.
Interior Minister Suleiman Soylu said Monday that the suspected bomber who planted the explosive device on Istiklal Avenue has been arrested and pointed to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) as responsible. He said the order came from Ain al Arab (Kobani), where the prominent Kurdish-Syrian militia People’s Protection Units (YPG) operates.
However the PKK disassociated itself from the attack. «We have nothing to do with this incident and it is well known to the public that we do not directly target civilians nor do we condone actions directed against civilians,» the People’s Defense Center Headquarters Command (HSM) said,» it noted. Likewise, the SDF, a coalition of militias whose main element is the YPG, also denied any connection with the attack.
