Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who traveled to Washington on Tuesday to attend the NATO summit, has promised to bring up the “ongoing massacre of Palestinians” at the hands of Israel during the alliance’s three-day meeting, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.
The heads of state and government of NATO member states are convening at the 2024 NATO Summit in Washington to set the alliance’s security policy course moving forward, and to mark the 75th anniversary of its founding. The summit will run from July 9 to July 11.
Erdoğan, who spoke at a news conference at Esenboğa Airport in Ankara before leaving for Washington, said NATO has not been able to meet Turkey’s expectations regarding the ongoing Israeli war on Gaza. He said he will bring up the issue during his meetings with international leaders on the sidelines of the summit and hopes to get the desired response from them.
“I will bring up the ongoing massacre of Palestinians in Gaza [at the summit] where our common valueswill undergo a test of sincerity,” Erdoğan said.
Erdoğan, who has taken a strong stance in support of the Palestinians and Palestinian militant group Hamas, accuses Israel of committing a “genocide” and “war crimes” in the Palestinian enclave of Gaza.
The Gaza war began with Hamas’s unprecedented October 7 attack on southern Israel which resulted in the deaths of around 1,200 people.
The militants also seized 251 hostages.
Israel in response has carried out a military offensive in Gaza that has left more than 38,000 people dead, also mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in Gaza.
However, according to a study published in the Lancet journal on July 5, the cumulative effects of Israel’s war on Gaza could mean the true death toll could reach more than 186,000 people, because the official toll does not take into account thousands of dead buried under rubble and indirect deaths due to destruction of health facilities, food distribution systems and other public infrastructure.
Meanwhile, Turkey’s Communications Directorate said a statement on Monday that the NATO summit in Washington will focus on discussions regarding the organization’s deterrence and defense efforts in response to regional challenges and risks.
Key topics will include the situation in Ukraine and efforts to combat terrorism, which have been identified as major threats to the alliance, the statement said.
In addition to NATO members, leaders from NATO’s Asia-Pacific partners — Australia, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand — along with the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, and representatives from the European Union, will attend the sessions, the statement added.
President Erdoğan is expected to have bilateral meetings with some participating heads of state and government on the margins of the summit.