US President Donald Trump has said that he has a “great relationship” with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and added that he would discuss the potential deployment of Turkish forces to Gaza during his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“I have a great relationship with President Erdogan, and we’ll be talking about it. And if it’s good, I think that’s good,” Trump said on Monday when asked whether he expects Turkish troops to be stationed in Gaza as part of the international stabilisation force (ISF) required in his 20-point Gaza ceasefire plan.
Netanyahu is on his fifth trip to the US since the start of Trump’s second term, with his visit coming as talks continue to advance to the second phase of the October Gaza ceasefire plan, which followed more than two years of Israel’s genocide on the Palestinian enclave.
The genocide has killed more than 71,200 Palestinians and wounded over 171,200 others since October 2023.
‘Increasingly frustrated’
The first phase of the ceasefire agreement included a halt to war, partial Israeli withdrawal, the exchange of all Israeli hostages—living and deceased — in return for the release of hundreds of Palestinians held by Israel, and the entry of “full humanitarian aid” into Gaza.
The second phase, outlined in Trump’s 20-point peace plan, includes a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, the disarmament of Hamas, deployment of the ISF, and the establishment of a Palestinian “technocratic” committee to temporarily govern Gaza. Israel opposes the involvement of Turkish troops in the ISF.
Despite the ceasefire, Israel continues to keep Gaza’s crossings largely closed, preventing the entry of mobile homes and reconstruction materials and worsening the humanitarian crisis affecting over 2 million people.
Axios reported last week, citing anonymous US officials, that Trump’s top team has grown “increasingly frustrated” with Netanyahu’s steps to “undermine the fragile ceasefire.”
Trump also added he hopes to reach phase two of the Gaza plan "very quickly."
Venezuela, Iran
Meanwhile, Trump also said that a recent US strike hit a Venezuelan dock area allegedly used to load boats with drugs, causing a “major explosion” and leaving the site no longer operational.
He added that the target was a coastal facility where narcotics were prepared for maritime transport.
"We hit all the boats, and now we hit the area," he said, calling it an "implementation area" that "is no longer around."
Trump did not specify which US agency carried out the attack, saying only that he knew who was responsible but did not want to disclose it. He added that the location was “along the shore.”
Asked whether he had spoken recently with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, Trump said he had spoken with him “pretty recently” but added that “nothing much comes of it.”
Caracas has not commented on either the call or the alleged strike.
On Iran, Trump said that the US would quickly launch new attacks on Iran if it is rebuilding the nuclear programme that he struck in June.
"I hear Iran is trying to build up again, and if they are, we have to knock them down," he said, adding, "We'll knock the hell out of them."
Trump also said he remained open to negotiating a "deal," which he called "much smarter."
