The Heat: Erdogan’s world tour

The Heat

President Donald Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan prepare to have lunch in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, May 16, 2017. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Turkey’s President visits the United States after recent trips to Russia, India and China. What’s the motivation for his international outreach?

Just less than a year after beating back a coup attempt, and weeks after winning a referendum that gives him more executive powers, Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is visiting with major world leaders.

He was in Washington this week where he met with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House. Both leaders expressed support for bilateral ties between their countries and a commitment to defeating ISIL.

However one area of contention between the leaders is the U.S. decision to arm the Kurdish YPG militia group fighting ISIL in Syria. Turkey considers the YPG part of the Kurdistan Workers Party, also known as the PKK, that it has labeled a terrorist organization.

President Erdogan has also recently visited China, India and Russia.

Tonight panel takes look at Erdogan’s visits:

  • Ali Cinar, executive president of the Turkish Heritage Foundation
  • Aykan Erdemir, a former member of the Turkish parliament
  • Joshua Walker, a non-resident fellow at the German Marshall Fund