Erdogan meets potential Merz successor during Ankara visit

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has received Hendrik Wüst, premier of Germany’s North Rhine-Westphalia state, at the Presidential Complex in Ankara.

The meeting was held behind closed doors, Daily Sabah reports.

Wüst, who is widely regarded as a potential successor to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, began a three-day visit to Türkiye with a call for a “new chapter” in relations between the two countries.

The 51-year-old conservative leader travelled from Düsseldorf to Ankara early September 28 accompanied by a large delegation, including a prominent business group. He was received by Erdogan shortly after his arrival.

The visit coincides with the 65th anniversary of the 1961 recruitment agreement that brought Turkish “guest workers” to West Germany. According to Germany’s Federal Statistical Office, around 3 million people of Turkish origin now live in Germany, with slightly more than half holding German citizenship.

Wüst noted that about one-third of people of Turkish origin in Germany live in North Rhine-Westphalia. “They are naturally part of our state,” he said, becoming the first premier of the state to make an official visit to Türkiye.

Wüst has repeatedly dismissed speculation that he could seek the German chancellorship. “I want to remain premier of North Rhine-Westphalia,” Wüst said on the eve of his departure, while pledging to “get the federal government firing on all cylinders again.”

During his visit to Ankara, Wüst was scheduled to visit a plant operated by Düsseldorf-based Henkel and the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of modern Türkiye. He was also due to meet Turkish business representatives in the evening.

On September 29, Wüst is expected to hold political talks in Ankara before travelling to Istanbul, where a business conference is scheduled. The program also includes the presentation of a prize for tolerance and reconciliation between cultures to former Germany football captain Ilkay Gündoğan.

Ahead of his departure, Wüst said he wanted to “focus on the positive for stronger cooperation in future,” arguing that critical questions and contentious issues could be addressed more effectively within a strong and close partnership.

“No [German] region is as closely linked to Türkiye, socially and economically, as North Rhine-Westphalia,” he said.

By Vafa Guliyeva