Ahead of Erdogan-Trump meeting, US priority is keeping Turkey in NATO: aide

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Turkey’s president should expect to face tough questions when he visits Washington on Wednesday, the United States’ national security advisor said in an interview on Sunday, but qualified that Turkey is an important NATO ally and maintaining that military alliance is a priority. 

Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to the White House is taking place during heightened tensions between the two nations – US lawmakers are considering legislation imposing sanctions on Turkey because of the Turkish military offensive against Kurdish forces in northern Syria where their proxy militias are accused of committing war crimes, and earlier this year the US removed Turkey from the F-35 fighter jet program after Ankara bought Russia’s S-400 air defence system. Both issues will be on the agenda when the presidents meet, according to National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien. 

“There’s no place in NATO for the S-400. There’s no place in NATO for significant Russian military purchases. That’s a message that the president will deliver to him [Erdogan] very clearly when he’s here in Washington,” O’Brien said in an interview with CBS’ Face the Nation, aired on Sunday.

Asked about the reports of war crimes committed by Syrian militias backed by Turkey in its offensive against the Kurdish forces, O’Brien said they are monitoring the situation. “There is no place for genocide, for ethnic cleansing, for war crimes in the 21st century. The US won’t stand by for it and we’ve made that position very clear to the Turks,” he said. 

But whether US President Donald Trump will back sanctions legislation now working its way through Congress will depend on what happens in the meeting between the two presidents, O’Brien said stressing that Turkey “plays a very important geopolitical role” for NATO. 

“Losing Turkey as an ally is not something that’s good… for Europe or for the United States,” he said. “We’re going to work on making sure that we can do our very best to keep them as a NATO member.” Trump will meet NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Thursday, a day after his talk with Erdogan. 

Both Trump and Erdogan place high value on the strength of their personal relationship, irrespective of ongoing disputes between their nations. Trump made the stunning decision to greenlight Turkey’s Operation Peace Spring into northern Syria after a phone call with Erdogan. A subsequent ceasefire brokered by Vice President Mike Pence was a “credit to the strong relationship between our two leaders,” Pence said in a press conference in Ankara after reaching the deal with Erdogan.

“I just want to thank and congratulate President Erdogan. He’s a friend of mine, and I’m glad we didn’t have a problem because, frankly, he’s a hell of a leader, and he’s a tough man,” Trump said after the ceasefire was announced. “He’s a strong man, and he did the right thing and I really appreciate it, and I will appreciate it in the future.”

Erdogan has stated that he uses his direct line to Trump when problems arise. 

Mazloum Abdi, commander of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), recognizes the relationship between them, telling Rudaw in a recent interview that Trump could stop Turkey’s offensive with “a single word” to Erdogan.

US Senator Lindsey Graham has warned that if Turkey continues its “aggression” against Kurdish and Christian populations in northern Syria, “it will sever what’s left of the US Congress/Turkish relationship.”