Why does Macron have to speak with Erdoğan every 10 days?

In a recent interview with Le Point magazine, French President Emmanuel Macron rejected the reporter's description of him as a "new cool kid" on the global stage. After all, he joked, it is he who has to speak with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan every 10 days. 

One of his aides at the Elysée later clarified that Macron's intention was not to mock or criticize President Erdoğan, but simply to stress that every conversation with the Turkish leader is always very serious.

On Sept. 1, Erdoğan said he did not perceive Macron's words as negative. On the contrary, he said, he saw his French counterpart's reference to him as positive. "I do not think [of the remarks] given to that magazine as being negative. On the contrary, speaking with the president of Turkey is a positive thing for them," he told reporters.

Whether he is right or wrong, Erdoğan should consider why these frequent conversations with Macron are taking place, and on what grounds. If the talks were always centered on global questions, such as joint efforts to resolve the Syrian civil war or other important regional issues, then he may have a point.

However, Macron's attempts to speak with Erdoğan are not always focused on global or regional issues.

 Rather, they are often related to arrested French journalists in Turkey.

One of the first issues that he had to deal with after his election as French president in early May was the detention of Frenchjournalist Mathias Depardon, after he was detained while on assignment for National Geographic magazine in Hasankeyf in the southeastern province of Batman. Depardon was detained on May 8, just one day after Macron was elected. He was later arrested in early June without any official charges being made.