On Thursday, the President stated that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has the potential to be extremely influential in bringing an end to Russia’s conflict in Ukraine, ‘should he choose to.’

In recent weeks, Trump has persistently called for a halt to all Russian oil acquisitions to cut off financial support for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s military campaign. He directed his attention to Erdoğan during a press briefing from the Oval Office.

While seated alongside Erdoğan, Trump remarked, ‘I believe he could exert significant influence if he desires.’ He added, ‘Currently, he maintains a very neutral stance. He prefers neutrality, and so do I.’

Trump further stated, ‘However, if he were to become involved, the most effective action he could take would be to cease purchasing oil and gas from Russia.’

The president informed journalists that the primary topics he intended to discuss with the Turkish leader were ‘war’ and ‘trade.’

Trump expressed, ‘I would like him to discontinue all oil purchases from Russia, especially while Russia persists in this destructive assault on Ukraine.’ He deemed it ‘disgraceful.’

He also commented, ‘Putin should cease these actions.’

Erdoğan indicated his intention to discuss the sale of U.S. F-35 fighter jets to Turkey. During Trump’s initial term, the U.S. prohibited Ankara from acquiring these jets after Turkey procured a Russian S-400 air defense system, due to worries that Moscow might gain access to American technology.

On Thursday, Trump did not specify whether he would consent to lift the prohibition or leverage it to broker a cessation of Turkish imports of Russian oil. Turkey currently stands as Russia’s third-largest importer, following India and China.

While India has already faced sanctions, and discussions with China are still in progress, Turkey has, until now, avoided Trump’s threats of secondary tariffs—although Trump mentioned that tariffs would also be a topic of discussion today.

Trump stated on Thursday that the U.S. and Turkey are ‘in excellent standing’ regarding a potential agreement on F-16 fighter jets, but he did not clarify if this also applied to F-35s.

Trump remarked, ‘We are discussing that with considerable seriousness.’ He added, ‘He requires certain provisions, and we require certain provisions, and we anticipate reaching a resolution by the close of the day.’