President Joe Biden sat down with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for an unannounced meeting on the sidelines of the Group of 20 leaders summit in Bali, Indonesia.
The White House deflected criticism that aides excluded U.S. reporters traveling with Biden by describing the discussion Tuesday afternoon local time as an informal “pull-aside.” The press pool learned of the pair’s conversation through Turkish media outlets and Erdogan’s government.
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Biden’s meeting with Erdogan coincides with Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu’s rejection of U.S. condolences over this week’s terrorist attack in Istanbul. Turkey has accused the Kurdish militant organization PKK of being behind the bombing, an ally of the United States in its war against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. Monday’s attack killed six people and wounded dozens more.
The White House said Biden thanked Erdogan for his leadership regarding the Black Sea Grain Initiative between Russia and Ukraine, which is due to expire on Nov. 19, agreeing it “has been critical to improving global food security amid Russia’s war” and “must continue.” Reports circulated Tuesday evening that Russia would likely support an extension of the program.
The Turkish readout focused on the country’s desire to buy F-16 multirole fighter aircraft from the U.S., an effort being blocked by Senate Democrats, in addition to seeking the extradition of Fethullah Gulen, a Pennsylvania-based cleric. Erdogan alleges Gulen was involved in inciting Turkey’s 2016 coup attempt.
President @RTErdogan met with President Joe Biden of the U.S. on the sidelines of the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Bali, Indonesia. pic.twitter.com/eWVDDnyLW3
— Presidency of the Republic of Türkiye (@trpresidency) November 15, 2022
Biden was also spotted speaking with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is poised to take over G-20 summit coordinating responsibilities from current host Indonesian President Joko Widodo. Modi is one of the “fence-sitter” leaders Ukraine allies are hoping will apply pressure on Russia to end the war by stopping their purchase of discounted Russian energy.
After a pushy + near-violent incident with foreign press, only three members of the U.S. pool made it upstairs for Biden’s greeting with Modi.
I asked Biden about his meeting w Erdogan — which the WH press corps learned about from the Turkish side — and Biden did not respond pic.twitter.com/W2OJUdfDkp
— Seung Min Kim (@seungminkim) November 15, 2022
Widodo, who conducted shuttle diplomacy between both Russia and Ukraine prior to the G-20 leaders summit, opened the event Tuesday by urging the world’s most powerful men and women to “end the war” in Ukraine and bridge “wide differences.” A draft communique indicates “most members” “strongly condemn” the conflict, insisting that “today’s era must not be of war.”
While Russian President Vladimir Putin did not attend the summit, sending Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in his stead, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed the leaders virtually. Zelensky had implored the G-20 to expel Russia from the organization, opening his remarks with reference to a “G-19” and later mentioning mounting interest in a peace deal.
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“If Russia says that it supposedly wants to end this war, let it prove it with actions,” Zelensky said.
