Erdoğan leaves for UN General Assembly with Gaza in mind

Accompanied by first lady Emine Erdoğan, a delegation of ministers and top officials, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan flew to New York on Sunday to attend the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). The event will be a showcase of Türkiye’s diplomatic prowess, which has helped Ankara raise its profile in the international community over the past two decades, from a mere observer of international affairs to a major power broker. As was the case at past assemblies, Erdoğan is expected to use the platform to draw attention to the plight of Palestinians in Gaza and the international community’s inaction over Israel’s atrocities.

The Turkish leader, who has addressed the assembly 16 times, is scheduled to be the fourth speaker on the assembly’s inaugural day on Sept. 22. Turkish media outlets reported that Erdoğan will focus his speech on Israel’s genocide in Gaza, recognition of a Palestinian state and steps that need to be taken to stop Israel.

On the margins of the assembly, Erdoğan will hold one-on-one talks with heads of state and government, including U.S. President Donald Trump. The talks between Erdoğan and Trump are expected to cover a broad range of issues, from CAATSA sanctions and the war in Ukraine to the $100 billion trade target and the war with Iran, as well as the procurement of F-35s and energy cooperation, according to a report by the Sabah newspaper.

From Ankara’s perspective, particular importance is attached to restarting the F-35 delivery process, which was suspended in 2019, securing engines for the national fighter jet KAAN, and fully lifting the CAATSA sanctions. Last year, Erdoğan also met with Trump in Washington following the U.N. General Assembly, while Trump visited Ankara in July. These meetings not only became milestones for the future of relations between the two countries but also stood out as examples of leader-level diplomacy.

On Sept. 23, Erdoğan will address a high-level event on climate action hosted by outgoing U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. Türkiye is the joint host with Australia of the upcoming COP31 summit on the issue.

Burhanettin Duran, head of the Turkish Presidency’s Communications Directorate, said in a social media post over the weekend that Erdoğan would also attend events organized by think tanks and meet with representatives of the Turkish diaspora and Turkish-American business circles during his visit to New York.

The new session of the UNGA, which brings together world leaders every year in New York, will begin under the theme “Rebuilding Trust and Reigniting Global Solutions: Advancing the 2030 Agenda and Its Sustainable Development Goals.”

Erdoğan first attended the U.N. General Assembly meetings in 2005, when he was prime minister. In a speech there in 2009, Erdoğan highlighted the need to reform the structure of the U.N., something that became a recurring theme in his speeches in the following years and in foreign policy-related speeches the president delivered elsewhere. In his first speech at the General Assembly as president in 2014, Erdoğan turned this call into a slogan: “The world is bigger than five,” in reference to reforming the structure of the U.N. Security Council, which has five permanent members. He may repeat it in his next speech, as the U.N. has still not carried out the anticipated reforms to give more say in global affairs to countries other than the major powers.

“The United Nations must act decisively on problems before further delays occur, before more oppressed and innocent people lose their lives, and before the global conscience is further wounded. I would like to underline once again that the world is bigger than five. It is unacceptable to the global conscience that the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council render the United Nations ineffective in a manner that is incompatible with the realities of the world.

“Every decision taken depends, as you can see, on the will of a single country. If it says ‘no,’ it is no; if it says ‘yes,’ then action can be taken. While more than 2,000 innocent people were killed in Palestine in just a few months, the United Nations failed to produce the expected solution. While more than 200,000 people have been killed in Syria over four years and nearly 9 million people have been displaced, the United Nations has again failed to offer effective solutions,” Erdoğan said in his 2014 speech.

DAILYSABAH