Turkey’s strongman is becoming Donald Trump’s point man
But renewed war with Iran would put the honeymoon with Recep Tayyip Erdogan to the test
THEY HAVE picked up right where they had left off. Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and President Donald Trump were beaming as they shook hands at the NATO summit in The Hague on June 24th. Mr Erdogan seemed equally upbeat after their meeting, the first since Mr Trump’s return to the White House, later that day. The American president, he announced, was warming up to the idea of unblocking the sale of F-35 stealth fighters to Turkey, stalled years ago after Mr Erdogan’s purchase of an S-400 air-defence system from Russia.
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This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Trump’s turn to Tayyip ”
Europe
July 5th 2025- In Putin’s Moscow, a summer of death and distraction
- A pragmatic amnesty for separatists benefits Catalonia
- Turkey’s strongman is becoming Donald Trump’s point man
- An infestation of ticks menaces Istanbul
- Germany’s Bundestag bars AfD MPs from its football team
- The sleeping policeman at the heart of Europe
From the July 5th 2025 edition
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Ukraine’s political infighting gets nasty
As Trump starves it of arms, there is turmoil inside the government
Germany’s Bundestag bars AfD MPs from its football team
Could the sporting ban precede a political one?
An infestation of ticks menaces Istanbul
And mosquitos are a growing problem too
The sleeping policeman at the heart of Europe
Enforcement of EU law has become an afterthought
A pragmatic amnesty for separatists benefits Catalonia
But it carries costs for the rule of law
America’s ominous new halt on weapons to Ukraine
It may reflect dwindling stocks but Ukraine thinks it is being pushed to make political concessions