Turkish President argues that if Trump called him before recognizing Jerusalem, he would not have made the move.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday that U.S. President Donald Trump should have called him before announcing his decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
“We made our call to the U.S. and are continuing to. There’s no reason not to have a meeting with Trump. Of course, we will call again. I wish that Trump calls us too,” Erdogan said in Ankara, according to the Hurriyet daily newspaper.
“From the beginning, we actually waited for them to call us before declaring these decisions, as the Organization of Islamic Cooperation term president,” he added.
“Turkey is among the countries that should be sought in this regard. I believe this mistake would not have been made if Mr. Trump had made his consultation with us. We can call him. But there is not yet a decision made [on doing so],” Erdogan said.
Erdogan has been one of the most vocal critics of Trump’s December 6 announcement that the U.S. recognizes Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
He warned the United States not to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, or to move its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, saying that any change to the status quo vis-à-vis Jerusalem would constitute a “red line” for Muslims.
He also threatened that his country would sever ties with Israel if Trump went through with the move. Erdogan later accused Israel of being a “terror state”.
The UN’s 193-member General Assembly adopted the resolution with an overwhelming majority of 128 members voting in favor.