Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan spoke by phone with U.S. President Donald Trump and discussed efforts to end the war between Russia and Ukraine and to restore stability in Syria, Erdogan's office said on Sunday.
He told Trump that Turkey supports his "decisive and direct initiatives" to end the war between Russia and Ukraine and that Turkey will continue to strive for a "just and lasting peace," the statement said.
Erdogan also spoke of "the importance of jointly contributing to the lifting of sanctions on Syria to restore stability, make the new administration functional and support normalization," the statement said, adding that this would enable Syrians to return to their homeland.
Turkey also expects steps from the United States regarding the fight against terrorism, taking into account Turkey's interests, it said.
In the battle against Islamic State in Syria, the United States is allied with a Syrian Kurdish militia that Turkey regards as a terrorist group. Turkey has sharply criticized this U.S. stance as a betrayal of a NATO ally.
Erdogan said it was necessary to end CAATSA sanctions, finalize Ankara's F-16 procurement process and its re-participation in the F-35 program in order to develop defense industry cooperation between Turkey and the United States.
Ankara's past purchase of Russian S-400 air defense systems prompted U.S. sanctions and Turkey's removal from the F-35 fighter jet program in 2019.
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