Turkish president welcomes Lebanese premier with official ceremony

By Merve Yildizalp

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday welcomed Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati with an official ceremony in Ankara.

Erdogan greeted Mikati at the main entrance of the Presidential Complex.

The ceremony included a 21-gun salute and featured soldiers carrying the flags of 16 historical Turkish states.

The leaders posed for photographers, shaking hands in front of the Turkish and Lebanese flags.

Erdogan and Mikati headed for bilateral and delegation-level meetings before a joint press conference.

Erdogan will also host an official dinner in Mikati’s honor later in the evening.

Senior Turkish officials who attended the ceremony included Environment Minister Murat Kurum, Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar, Culture Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, Defense Minister Yasar Guler, National Intelligence Organization chief Ibrahim Kalın, and Ankara Governor Vasip Sahin.

On Tuesday, Turkish Communications Director Fahrettin Altun announced the meeting between the two leaders.

On X, Altun confirmed that the meeting will take place in the Turkish capital Ankara on Wednesday and that the discussions will focus on bilateral relations and developments in Palestine and Syria amid continued attacks and incursions by Israeli forces.