WASHINGTON Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogans visit to the White House drew sharp bipartisan criticism from Congress and rallied protesters across the capital on Wednesday who decried Turkeys recent military foray into northeastern Syria.
Erdogan arrived at the White House under heavy security and was largely shielded from the view of the several hundred demonstrators, including Armenian, Kurdish, Jewish and Christian groups, who gathered in nearby Lafayette Park waving signs and chanting, Turkey out of Syria! and Erdogan go home!
But in a brief news conference after their meeting, President Donald Trump praised the Turkish leader, saying he was a big fan of Erdogans.
The Turkish president called Trump my dear friend. But he also publicly said that he had returned a letter Trump sent him last month asking him to not invade Syria. In the letter, which the White House released, Trump urged Erdogan to not be a tough guy and admonished him: Dont be a fool.
Reports from Turkey at the time cited government officials as saying that Erdogan tossed the missive in the trash.
On Wednesday, asked about the letter and with Trump standing at his side, Erdogan said, We gave back the letter we received.
A long list of actions by Turkey a NATO ally has troubled Congress and human rights organizations. In Syria, Turkish army units and Turkish-backed militias have been accused of possible war crimes in the killing of Kurds, who led the U.S.-backed fight against Islamic State militants. Erdogan sent his troops into Syria last month when Trump abruptly announced the withdrawal of U.S. forces a decision that was met with unusually fierce opposition from Republicans as well as Democrats.
In Turkey, Erdogan has imprisoned or fired tens of thousands of dissidents, civil servants, police, professors and military officers after a failed coup against him in 2016. The president has manipulated elections to stay in power, according to pro-democracy organizations in Ankara. Turkey is the worlds leading jailer of journalists.
Turkey also has turned increasingly toward Russia, recently buying military equipment the S-400 surface-to-air missile system from Moscow, which experts say may not be compatible with equipment the North Atlantic Treaty Organization already uses.
In their news conference, the two leaders said they had discussed the Russian weapons system, but they clearly had not reached agreement.
Erdogan also defended his countrys military operations in Syria, saying they were aimed at wiping out terrorists, a term he used to include Islamic State and some of the Kurdish factions allied with the United States.
Numerous congressional officials demanded that the invitation be rescinded and expressed concern that Trump had not revealed the contents of his phone call with Erdogan that apparently gave the Turkish leader a green light to invade Syria.
Its inexcusable that this visit is going forward despite the egregious behavior of President Erdogan, said Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H. President Trump is once again coddling an authoritarian leader and sending a terrible message. I urge congressional leadership to seek a full accounting of discussions.
Some Republicans agreed.
President Erdogans visit comes during a deeply troubling time in our bilateral relationship, said Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, ranking Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. President Erdogan must reverse course and recommit to NATO and our bilateral partnership.
