Cavusoglu: Türkiye most important actor in US foreign policy priorities

Türkiye is the most crucial player in the US foreign policy priorities, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has said, but asked Washington not to devalue Ankara's efforts.

Citing the recent Ankara-brokered grain deal that staved off global food crisis, Cavusoglu said on Saturday: "In foreign policy areas, when we look at US priorities, Türkiye remains not one of the most important actors, but the most important actor. So the US should not belittle Türkiye's importance by just saying 'the grain deal is done, thank you'."

Clearing hurdles and addressing disagreements between the two countries benefits both sides, Cavusoglu told members of the Turkish American community in Los Angeles, California.

Turning to the Türkiye-US Strategic Mechanism established last October, he said the two nations should resolve issues, and boost cooperation, which he said, "is the goal.",

"We need to take concrete steps too," he added.

Cavusoglu also said Türkiye was the focus during talks with his counterparts on the sidelines last week of the UN General Assembly, adding that most of them spoke highly of Turkish efforts in the Russia-Ukraine crisis, including the grain deal and a recent prisoner exchange.

Some 60 percent of world conflicts including Afghanistan and Syria have been happening around Türkiye, he said, adding: "We're working to minimise the impact of the crises.”

Last October, meeting in Rome, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his US counterpart Joe Biden agreed to establish a strategic mechanism that promotes high-level dialogue and addresses issues on which Türkiye and the US do not fully agree, along with issues they are working on.

During a visit this April to the Turkish capital Ankara by Victoria Nuland, US undersecretary of state for political affairs, the mechanism was launched.

US support for terror groups

Turkish-American relations have been strained in recent years due to US cooperation with the terrorist group YPG/PKK in Syria, its failure to extradite the wanted ringleader of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), disagreements over Türkiye's purchase of Russia’s S-400 air defence system, and Washington's sanctions on Türkiye.

FETO and its US-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup in Türkiye on July 15, 2016, in which 251 people were killed and 2,734 wounded.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organisation by Türkiye, the US, and the EU – has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.

The YPG is the PKK's Syrian offshoot.

The US has said it is cooperating with the YPG/PKK in northern Syria to fight the terrorist group Daesh, but Turkish officials say using one terrorist group to fight another makes no sense, morally or otherwise.

Following his US visit, Cavusoglu will head to Tokyo to attend the state funeral of Shinzo Abe, the late Japanese premier.