NATO/SYRIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TURKEY: “President Donald Trump on Wednesday [12-4-19] morning participated in an unannounced meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, following months of scrutiny over the administration’s posture toward Ankara and controversial shifts in Syria policy. The meeting, which was absent from Trump’s public schedule, appeared to occur on the sidelines of a larger gathering of NATO leaders Wednesday in Watford, England, and was first announced in a post by the official Twitter account for the Turkish presidency. In a subsequent statement, the White House confirmed the sit-down and said Trump and Erdoğan ‘discussed the importance of Turkey fulfilling its alliance commitments, further strengthening commerce through boosting bilateral trade by $100 billion, regional security challenges, and energy security.’”
–Quint Forgey, “Trump meets with Erdogan as other world leaders scold Turkey,” Politico, December 4, 2019