US is ‘disturbing peace and quiet of Middle East,’ Erdogan says

In rare briefing, Recep Tayyip Erdogan attempts to paint Turkey as calm leader of fractious Middle East

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks at a funeral prayer in absentia for former Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi in Istanbul this week (EPA)

Turkey's president admitted for the first time that his country was supplying military equipment to Libyan fighters defending the capital during a wide-ranging and rare meeting with international journalists.

During a two-hour discussion with reporters inside a wing of the ornate Dolmabahce Palace along Istanbul’s Bosphorus Strait, Recep Tayyip Erdogan lambasted his domestic political rivals, sketched out his vision for the region, including ties with nations of the former Ottoman Empire.

He discussed his country's rocky relations with the White House, describing his rapport with Donald Trump as positive, but blaming the US president's subordinates for failing to implement his policies.

“When we have contacts with his subordinates, our people can’t see eye to eye with him,” he said. “When I take a decision, I make sure it gets implemented. If a backward step is taken, it means the bureaucracy is leading you.”

He demanded international action against Egypt for the death in custody of deposed president Mohamed Morsi and Saudi Arabia for the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

“We will never allow the tragedy of President Mohammed Morsi to be forgotten, just like we did not agree for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi to be forgotten,” he told reporters over a late breakfast of pastries, cheese, vegetables, and fruit.

Mr Erdogan appeared confident and relaxed just days before closely watched municipal elections for the city of Istanbul. Binali Yildirim, the candidate for Mr Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP), is facing off for a second time against the dynamic Ekrem Imamoglu of the opposition People’s Republican Party (CHP), after 31 March elections were annulled.

Mr Erdogan had been refraining from playing a heavy role in the election. But he has entered the fray in recent days, and on Thursday he let loose on Mr Imamoglu, describing him as dishonest and incompetent.

“This person, most of what he says are lies,” he said of Mr Imamoglu, who has alleged corruption in Turkey’s largest city. “Our citizens have already seen this fact, and this Sunday they will act accordingly and as a result of such assessments. Thanks to his experience, Yilidrm will win. Administering a huge city is not someone anyone can do.”

Still, he said he would accept the outcome of the vote.

Responding to reporters’ questions, Mr Erdogan vowed to go forward with plans to purchase Russian s-400 anti-aircraft systems, despite US objections, dismissing the possibility of sanctions or being excluded from NATO membership.

He reiterated that the purchase was a “done deal,” and criticised the US for past failures to sell it military equipment. Turkey pursued the purchase of the S-400s after the US refused to sell it Patriot missiles on favourable terms, Turkey has said.

He said Turkey was also unconcerned about being excluded from the purchase of advanced F-35 fighter jets.

“The US did not give us unmanned aerial vehicles,” he said. “We asked them to lease or sell them. What did that bring about? The private sector focused and leaned on this … right now we manage our own UAVs. We are testing a very large armed UAV. We will make our own fighter planes. We do have the brain power.”

Mr Erdogan also suggested Turkey would not abide by US-imposed sanctions on Iran, criticising the US for “coming from 12,000 kilometres away and disturbing the peace and quiet of the Middle East.”

He noted that Turkey needed Iran as a supplier of energy, despite the Trump administration’s removal of a waiver that allowed the country to trade with the Islamic Republic without punishment.

“We have some significant purchases from Iran such as oil and gas,” he said. “The natural gas that I procure from Russia is not enough to keep my citizens warm in the winter.”

But he reserved his most scathing criticism for Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who seized control of the country in a 2013 coup in which Morsi was deposed. His death this week in a Cairo courtroom has clearly rattled Mr Erdogan, who likened it to the 1961 execution of Turkish president Adnan Menderes at the hands of Turkish generals.

He called for western nations who purport to stand for human rights and democracy to speak out about his fate. He backed UN and human rights advocates’ demands for an international inquiry into Morsi’s death.

“Can you imagine the first elected president of a country struggles for his life or 20 to 25 minutes without the slightest intervention to save his life?” he asked. “Could there be such a murder?”

Mr Erdogan outlined a wide range of regional interests for Turkey, including the 5 million or more Turks who live in Europe, ethnic Turks in Central Asia, and Arabs in former Ottoman countries such as Syria, Somalia, Yemen, and Palestine.

Recently, photos emerged on social media showing Turkish armoured vehicles and drones in the hands of Libyan fighters defending the UN-backed government in Tripoli from the United Arab Emirates and Egyptian-backed warlord Khalifa Haftar’s forces.

Mr Erdogan publicly admitted for the first time that Turkey has been supplying military hardware to the Libyans, flaunting a UN arms embargo. He declined to detail the weaponry, but described the ministry of defence and the Turkish national intelligence agency as key players in the programme.

“In light of their demands, we offer them support, in exchange for compensation, of course,” he said in response to a question by The Independent. “They had great troubles in defence equipment because they were unable to get any support for anywhere. With regard to the drones, for example, they have ensured a balance of power.”