Erdogan gives Putin a dose of his own medicine

Erdogan gives Putin a dose of his own medicine
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Update: 20 July 2022 13:36
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Turkish President left his Russian counterpart fidgeting alone in front of cameras in what is seen as a payback from 2020 when Erdogan and his entourage were kept waiting in an antechamber

In a first meet since the war in Ukraine began, Russian and Turkish presidents in Tehran vowed to continue their efforts to find a solution to global grain crisis caused by the Russian isolation of Ukrainian ports. 

“Russian delegation’s approach in Istanbul meetings was very positive. The result we will get from here will positively affect the whole world” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin thanked Turkey for mediating between Russia and Ukraine and said: “We haven’t solved all the problems yet. However, there is a movement forward and that is positive.”

The two leaders put on a happy face when they shook hands and posed for the photographers but in an unusual move, Erdogan made Putin wait alone in front of the cameras which captured him shuffling his feet and sucking his cheeks.

“Those 50 seconds that Erdogan made Putin wait, looking frazzled in front of cameras say plenty of how much has changed after Ukraine,” said journalist Joyce Karam from National News in a Twitter post.

Some speculated the exchange was a payback for Erdogan after Putin left the Turkish leader and his entourage waiting in humiliation for around two minutes outside in an antechamber before a meeting in 2020. Russian news outlets explicitly shared the footage.

Putin regularly keeps world leaders waiting. Among the leaders that Putin has kept waiting were Queen Elisabeth, Pope Francis, former US President Donald Trump and former German Chancellor Angela Merkel.