https://arab.news/ptmfu
ISTANBUL: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was due to meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday to discuss the escalating Middle East crisis and migration.
Scholz arrived in Istanbul on Friday night after a meeting with US President Joe Biden and the leaders of France and Britain in Berlin.
The West is hoping that the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar by Israel will lead to a ceasefire in Gaza after a year of conflict.
A fierce critic of Israel’s Gaza campaign, Erdogan has often criticized Western capitals for supporting Israel which he brands a “terror state.”
Berlin is a strong supporter of Israel and has defended its right to self-defense.
Scholz on Friday said he hoped Sinwar’s death would pave the way for a ceasefire. Sinwar was considered the architect of the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel which sparked the Gaza conflict.
Erdogan has forged close ties with the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas.
His foreign minister Hakan Fidan on Friday held talks with Hamas officials in Istanbul and offered “condolences” over Sinwar’s death.
They also discussed “the state of recent negotiations for a ceasefire deal allowing the exchange of hostages and prisoners,” Fidan’s ministry said.
Turkiye’s relations with Germany — home to Europe’s largest Turkish diaspora of some three million people — are sensitive. Berlin has voiced concerns over the state of human rights and democracy under Erdogan especially after a failed 2016 coup.
Migration is expected to figure high on the agenda of the talks between Scholz and Erdogan.
Scholz’s government has been under heightened pressure over the issue after a series of violent crimes and extremist attacks committed by asylum seekers.
Turkiye will also expect progress on its plans to buy 40 Eurofighter Typhoons which are built by a four-nation consortium including Germany.
Scholz last visited Turkiye in March 2022 a few months after taking office.