U.S. President Donald Trump is considering adding a visit to Türkiye as part of his Middle East trip next month, following planned stops in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, according to sources familiar with the discussions.
No details about the exact date of Trump’s visit have been revealed, but he is expected to start his visit in mid-May, sources said.
A senior White House official told CNN Arabic that Trump discussed the visit during a recent phone conversation with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
The U.S. president is not planning to visit Israel during the trip, according to sources.
The potential addition comes shortly after Trump praised President Erdoğan during a public appearance on Monday – notably in front of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Trump said that he told Netanyahu he “has to be reasonable” over any disputes he has with Türkiye, as he also hailed his relationship with President Erdoğan.
“Any problem that you have with Turkey, I think I can solve. I mean, as long as you’re reasonable, you have to be reasonable. We have to be reasonable,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.
“Bibi, if you have a problem with Turkey, I really think you’re going to be able to work it out. You know, I have a very, very good relationship with Turkey and with their leader, and I think we’ll be able to work it out. So I hope that’s not going to be a problem. I don’t think it will be a problem,” he added, using a nickname to refer to Netanyahu.
Trump said he has “great relations” with Erdoğan, whom he described as “a tough guy, and he’s very smart, and he did something that nobody was able to do,” referring to earlier remarks in which he said he believes “it was Türkiye” that orchestrated the downfall last December of Syria’s dictator Bashar Assad.