Erdogan Says He Returned Trump’s Letter Warning Him Not to Be a ‘Tough Guy’
The Turkish president commented on the fate of the letter while standing right next to Trump at a joint news conference.

Alex Wong/Getty
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he personally returned the letter President Trump sent warning him against launching an offensive into Syria last month, Bloomberg reports. In a news conference alongside Trump on Wednesday, Erdogan said he returned Trump's letter—which warned him not to be a “tough guy” or a “fool” about Syria—earlier that day in a White House meeting. Trump reportedly did not respond to the Turkish president.
The Oct. 9 letter was sent in the aftermath of Trump pulling troops out of Syria and away from U.S.-allied Kurdish forces. Trump wrote that history would look upon Turkey as “the devil if good things don’t happen,” but the country started it's offensive later that week. Kurdish forces were subsequently forced out of the region bordering Turkey.
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