Trump defends U.S. relations with Turkey after Syria withdrawal

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday continued to defend Washington's relationship with Turkey after the historical decision to withdraw American troops from northeastern Syria in a move that opens the way for Turkey's planned military operation on the region held by YPG that has been seen by Ankara as Syrian branch of the bloody-minded PKK terror group.

"So many people conveniently forget that Turkey is a big trading partner of the United States, in fact they make the structural steel frame for our F-35 Fighter Jet. They have also been good to deal with," Trump wrote in posts on Twitter.

"Also remember, and importantly, that Turkey is an important member in good standing of NATO," Trump added.
US President Donald Trump also announced that he would host his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the capital Washington on Nov. 13.

"They have also been good to deal with, helping me to save many lives at Idlib province, and returning, in very good health, at my request, Pastor Brunson, who had many years of a long prison term remaining," Trump said.

Brunson was arrested in December 2016 and charged in Turkey's Aegean province of Izmir with being a member of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), the group behind a defeated 2016 coup bid.

The American pastor was sentenced to a little more than three years in prison. In July 2018, it was changed to house arrest and finally in October he was released due to time served and good behavior in custody.

Trump also reiterated that Turkey is also "an important member in good standing of NATO" at a time when the U.S. administration criticizes many NATO members for not living up to their responsibilities within the alliance.