NATO powerful only with Turkey, says Erdoğan

NATO is powerful only with Turkey and without it, the alliance is not that strong, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said, citing Ankara as among the top five nations within the security institutions which is fully fulfilling all the NATO missions, in remarks ahead of the alliance's summit in mid-June.

"First of all, we are strong in terms of our armed forces, and in this regard, a NATO with Turkey is strong; a NATO without Turkey is not strong. [NATO Secretary-General Jens] Stoltenberg says this all the time," Erdoğan told in an interview with national broadcaster TRT late June 1.

His statement came two weeks before the NATO Leaders' Summit, where the NATO 2030 report and other current regional and global conflicts will be discussed. Erdoğan, on the margins of the summit, will hold a bilateral talk with U.S. President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

Erdoğan said he would discuss the role of Turkey within the alliance in a bid to respond to some criticisms from some member states.

"We have to question the stance of our partners and friends in NATO toward Turkey. What is it? If they ask which the top five nations at NATO are, Turkey is one of them. Whoever argues the contrary, [Turkey is in top five countries] in the air, on land and at sea…" he said.

"We want an equal relationship with the allied countries. They have to get used to that," he added.

NATO should question Macron's words

Turkey is a strong member at NATO, and it wants NATO to endure in the strongest way, Erdoğan suggested, criticizing French President Emmanuel Macron, who once had argued that the NATO was brain dead.

"NATO should question this. We also know with whom...