ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Istanbul. Both leaders discussed bilateral concerns and opportunities for cooperation on Saturday. But they couldn’t agree on their respective stances toward Israel. The news conference following their meeting was otherwise cordial. But Erdogan had very harsh words for Israel and its Western supporters. Scholz on the other hand defended Israel’s “right to self defense” and expressly disagreed with Erdogan’s labeling of the war in Gaza as “genocide.”
