Turkish delight: Trump revels in Erdogan’s lavish welcome

ANKARA – From Ottoman warriors in suits of armour to a marble palace and fighter jets, US President Donald Trump got the kind of welcome he loves in Turkey on July 7.

World leaders seeking to woo the unpredictable Trump have learnt that nothing impresses the 80-year-old more than an arrival fit for a king.

And Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan knows it better than most.

The two ageing leaders share a taste for both lavish presidential architecture and an autocratic style of government, and their bromance was on full display when Trump arrived in Ankara for a NATO summit.

“You’ve been a great leader,” a clearly satisfied Trump told reporters as he sat beside to Erdogan after his arrival at the sprawling Bestepe Presidential Compound in the capital.

“We’ve had a very special relationship.”

Erdogan even personally met Trump at the airport – with the 72-year-old on several occasions holding the US leader under the arm after he disembarked his new Air Force One plane.

The jet itself illustrates how allies have used flattery and envy to keep Trump onside.

Qatar’s royal family controversially gifted the retrofitted plane to the United States in 2025, after Trump complained about the embarrassing state of the older US aircraft that transport the president.

In Ankara, Turkish riders on horseback flanked Trump’s limousine as it drove through the hushed streets to the presidential palace, where an honour guard in red and blue uniforms greeted him.

Trump stood to attention as the Star Spangled Banner played and even attempted a greeting in Turkish – before Turkish fighter jets streaked overhead trailing red, white and blue smoke.

In a theatrical touch, around two dozen soldiers wearing historic-style suits of armour, pointed helmets and what appeared to be fake beards and moustaches stood outside the palace itself.

Popularly known as the “White Palace”, the vast complex cost around US$615 million (S$795.44 million) when it was built in 2014, and draws its architectural inspiration from Turkey’s Ottoman and Seljuk heritage.

The cost prompted critics to lambast it as the latest excess of Erdogan, whom they accused of authoritarian leanings.

But its soaring atriums decorated with onyx and green marble could hardly be better calculated to induce jealousy in Trump, who frequently raves about the opulent dwellings of other foreign leaders.

In his second term in office, the former real estate billionaire has appeared increasingly obsessed with turning Washington into his own vision of an imperial capital.

Trump demolished an entire wing of the White House to build a massive US$400 million ballroom, is planning a giant triumphal arch dubbed the “Arc de Trump” and has launched a huge drive to renovate the city’s monuments.

‘Very happy’

The Turkish leader’s opulent welcome was meanwhile part of a pattern used by leaders seeking to weaponise Trump’s love of palatial splendour.

French President Emmanuel Macron hosted Trump for dinner at Versailles after a Group of Seen summit in June, with the US President calling the palace of the Sun King Louis XIV “the real deal”.

Chinese President Xi Jinping gave Trump a grand ceremonial welcome at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing in May, followed by a trip to the Temple of Heaven and tea at the Communist Party’s exclusive Zhongnanhai compound.

Britain’s King Charles III laid on a state visit for Trump at Windsor Castle in September 2025, complete with yet another flyover and lashings of pomp and ceremony.

Earlier this week, Trump was still talking about the castle, describing it as the “longest building I’ve ever seen”.

And, in May 2025, Trump sounded more than a little envious of his Arab hosts as he praised the marble of Qatar’s royal palace as “perfecto” and marvelled at Saudi Arabia’s architecture.

Back in Turkey, Trump seemed particularly touched by what he said was having a “building named after me” at Ankara airport.

“I’m very happy about that,” said Trump – whose attempt to add his own name to the John F. Kennedy Performing Arts Center in Washington was recently overturned by a court. AFP