U.S. President Donald Trump said of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at a summit held in New York on Tuesday: “He’s a tough and wonderful man. Don’t mess with him.”
Speaking at the summit, which was attended by Erdoğan as well as the leaders of Egypt, the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Lebanon and Iraq, Trump recalled that they had also met with countries in the region last year on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly meetings.

Trump said last year’s meetings had addressed steps that could be taken to end the war in Gaza and that efforts had been made to bring the crisis in the region to an end. Turning to Erdoğan during his remarks, Trump said his friend from Türkiye was also attending the meeting.
Trump said the leaders attending the summit were making major efforts to stop the bloodshed in Gaza, adding that the countries were ready to make significant contributions to the reconstruction of Gaza.