Future Talks Between Biden and Erdoğan: Axes And Topics

After much deliberation, the White House announced that US President Joe Biden and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan would meet on June 14 on the sidelines of the NATO summit.

This will be the first face-to-face meeting between Erdoğan and Biden, while Biden, after winning the presidential election, did not show any interest in meeting with former US President Donald Trump. But next week’s meeting between Biden and Erdoğan is crucial for the Turkish government, and it has long attracted the attention of the Turkish media.
The fact is that there are many controversial issues between Turkey and the United States, while after the failed 2016 coup in Turkey and US support for Fethullah Gulen as the main cause of this coup, we are witnessing the height of these differences.

There are six important cases before Ankara and Washington these days, and Erdoğan is expected to raise the issue in a meeting with Biden and offer suggestions for resolving it.

1. US support for the PKK

One of the most important cases for the Turkish government in relation to the United States is the issue of fighting the groups of PKK that is the red line of the Turkish government and even Turkey has carried out various operations on the Iraqi-Syrian border under this pretext. But in return, the US government has provided arms support to these groups. Even recently, the Pentagon requested $715 billion in defense spending for the fiscal year 2022, of which $522 million was spent on training programs and equipment in Iraq and Syria. CPC is also included.

2- The issue of S-400 and Turkish sanctions

Another case is the Ankara government’s desire to further expand its relations with Moscow and purchase the S-400 system, which pits the US and Turkish governments against each other as NATO allies. In this regard, the United States has put the Katsa sanctions against Turkey on its agenda.

Even in December 1999, the US Treasury Department sanctioned the Turkish Defense Industries Organization for purchasing the S-400 missile defense system from Russia. Earlier, the US government had excluded Turkey from the program of joint production of F-35 fighter jets. The US fear of losing the arms market and the fear of NATO disintegration are among the factors that have led the US opposition to buy S-400 missile systems from Russia.

3- Eastern Mediterranean problem

Another issue is the Eastern Mediterranean case; In recent years, the Eastern Mediterranean has become the battleground for energy policy and sovereignty between the littoral states. Turkey also experienced many tensions with the Eastern Mediterranean states, especially Greece, due to its gas drilling activities. But more recently, we have seen the US moves in the Eastern Mediterranean in support of Greece and Greek Cyprus, which Turkey sees as a move against itself. Washington also pursues the goal of creating a broad opposition front against Moscow. By entering directly into the Eastern Mediterranean issue, the United States intends to create the conditions on this seabed so that Europe can get rid of its energy dependence on Russia by supplying its gas energy.

4- Trial of Reza Zarab and Hulk Bank in the United States

Reza Zarab, an Iranian-Turkish businessman, was arrested in December 1992 in connection with a widespread corruption case involving Turkish government officials in connection with aiding and abetting sanctions against Iran and other cases of economic corruption but was later released. Zarab was arrested again in March 2016 while traveling to the United States, and in recent years his trial with the Hulk Bank of Turkey (People’s Bank) for allegedly circumventing sanctions has continued. Although Recep Tayyip Erdoğan himself has spoken to US officials and called for a halt to the trial, no results have been obtained.

5. US support for Fethullah Gulen

US support for the Gulen movement was a major factor in the failed July 15, 2016 coup, and the failure to extradite its leader, Fethullah Gulen, to the Turkish government, could be the starting point for tensions between Ankara and Washington. Despite the request of the Ankara government, Washington refuses to extradite him to Turkey. This is one of the oldest disputes between the two countries, which has remained unresolved for five years.

6- Recognition of the Armenian Genocide

US President Joe Biden’s move to recognize the Armenian Genocide by the Ottoman Empire has posed a new challenge to Washington-Ankara relations. Although Turkish officials have reacted sharply to the issue, the main issue is the possibility of Armenia seeking compensation, which could be raised financially and territorially, which has worried the Turkish government.