Ankara, TÜRKİYE – US President Donald Trump on Tuesday sent shockwaves through the international diplomatic community by announcing plans to lift existing economic sanctions against Türkiye and hinting at a potential restoration of the F-35 fighter jet program to Ankara.
Speaking to international correspondents during a high-stakes bilateral meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara, Trump explicitly favored easing geopolitical tensions with the host nation. Okay News reports that Trump declared, “We’re going to be taking the sanctions off… We don’t want to sanction friends,” adding that he is actively coordinating with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to finalize the directive. The US leader also brushed aside longstanding concerns regarding Türkiye’s acquisition of the Russian S-400 missile defense system, characterizing the current bilateral relationship as “better than it’s ever been.”
While praising Erdoğan as a “very strong leader,” Trump expressed deep frustration with other NATO allies, accusing them of failing to support US operations against Iran despite Washington investing trillions of dollars in the defense alliance. His criticism extended directly to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, whom he claimed “just wasn’t there for us” regarding joint maritime efforts to reopen the strategic Strait of Hormuz, adding fuel to a public feud where Trump recently mocked the Italian leader on social media.
In a separate, highly contentious policy declaration, Trump aggressively renewed his long-standing ambition for the United States to seize control of Greenland from Denmark. Dismayed by European opposition to the territorial proposal, Trump warned that the US could pull all of its military personnel out of Europe, asserting that Greenland “should be controlled by the United States, not by Denmark.” Despite the geopolitical friction, Trump expressed strong optimism regarding broader global conflicts, maintaining that both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy are highly motivated to reach an imminent deal to end their war following his recent direct phone calls with both leaders.
