WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump, sitting alongside Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the White House on Thursday, said the Turkish leader “knows all about rigged elections” as he spoke about their friendship.
Speaking to reporters, Trump said his friendship with Erdogan remained strong even while he was “in exile” after his loss in the 2020 presidential election.
“Even for four years, when I was in exile, unfairly as it turns out, rigged election. He knows about rigged elections better than anybody,” Trump said, pointing to Erdogan.
“But when I was in exile, we were still friends. That’s always a good way to find out, test a friendship,” he added.
.@POTUS: “It’s a pleasure to be with President @RTErdogan of Turkey, and we’ve been friends for a long time… We do a lot of trade with Turkey, and we’re going to continue. We’re going to do some additional trade… We’re going to get a lot done.” pic.twitter.com/XbklqQrP9r
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) September 25, 2025
Donald Trump has repeatedly said —without providing evidence—that his 2020 presidential loss to Democrat Joe Biden was the result of a “rigged” election.
At the same time, Turkiye’s opposition parties have consistently argued that elections in the country are held under unfair conditions, with international observers frequently supporting these concerns about a lack of electoral transparency and equal competition.
Stop buying oil from Russia
President Trump also urged Turkiye to stop buying oil from Russia, part of a wider drive to cut off Moscow’s energy funding as the war in Ukraine rages on.
He said halting those imports would be “the best thing” his Turkish counterpart could do.
China, India, and Turkiye are the biggest recipients of oil that used to go to the European Union. The EU’s decision to boycott most Russian seaborne oil from January 2023 led to a massive shift in crude flows from Europe to Asia.
Meanwhile, Trump said that US sanctions on Turkiye’s defence sector over its purchase of Russian missiles could end “almost immediately” if talks with Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan go well.
President Trump Participates in a Bilateral Meeting with the President of the Republic of Turkey https://t.co/bnlpUxb7J5
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) September 25, 2025
“They want to buy F-16s, F-35s, and some other things, and we’re going to talk to them about that,” Trump said. “We’re just going to have, I think, a very interesting couple of hours. We’re going to get a lot done.”
Turkiye has, for years, been prevented from buying US F-35s. In 2019, it was expelled from a programme where it produced parts for the warplane after it acquired air defence systems from Russia.
The visit marks Erdogan’s first trip to the White House since 2019.
For his part, Erdogan reiterated his belief that relations with Washington were moving into a new phase under Trump’s leadership.
“We are experiencing a different process in Turkiye-America relations, during both the first and second term of Mr. Trump,” he said.
