President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan left New York early yesterday, skipping a dinner hosted by US President Joe Biden for world leaders attending the 78th United Nations General Assembly.
The president was expected to attend the dinner on Sep 25, but after completing his meetings, he departed New York for Turkey with his spouse Emine Erdoğan.
They left from John F. Kennedy International Airport aboard the presidential plane "CAN" at 12.40 am local time (GMT-7). The plane landed at Atatürk Airport in İstanbul at 9.30 am Turkish time today (GMT+3), according to the state-run Anadolu Agency (AA).
It had been previously announced that Erdoğan would join Biden's event. There has been no official explanation from Ankara regarding the change in plans. However, there was speculation in the Turkish media that Erdoğan’s decision was related to the US administration’s support for Israel’s attacks on Gaza and Lebanon, which he strongly criticized during his speech at the General Assembly.
Emine Erdoğan, meanwhile, did participate in a separate luncheon hosted by US First Lady Jill Biden for the spouses of attending leaders.
President Erdoğan’s trip to New York included participation in UN discussions and bilateral meetings. (VK)