There were no apologies, as Emmanuel Macron announced.

After his face-to-face meeting with the Turkish president, the French president is still hoping for improved cooperation.

The two heads of state exchanged 45 minutes on Monday on the sidelines of the NATO summit, "longer than planned," said the Elysée Palace.

Michaela Wiegel

Political correspondent based in Paris.

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    After the verbal skirmishes the two had fought over the past few years, the return to dialogue was already a step forward. The unauthorized decision by Erdogan to take military action against Kurdish fighters in Syria was the result of Macron's angry remark about NATO's brain death in November 2019. At the time, Macron was deeply indignant that a NATO ally attacked the Kurdish allies in the fight against the terrorist organization Islamic State (IS) and America let it go.

    But now the signs point to rapprochement again. At his final press conference in Brussels, Macron boasted that his criticism sparked an important debate for NATO. He stated this in his conversation with Erdogan, "with whom a useful way will be found in Syria and Libya". Macron did not mention that Erdogan's changed stance was primarily due to the pressure exerted on him by American President Biden. The Frenchman pointed out that the NATO allies had agreed "on a right to conflict resolution" "if the behavior of an ally raises questions for the security of the other allies". With this, Macron took off the precedent in autumn 2019,when the Turkish military intervention in Syria threatened the security of the French special forces that had to be deployed.

    "Clarification contributed to many topics"

    From now on Macron and Erdogan want to coordinate more closely.

    The long-simmering conflict over Libya should also be resolved.

    As Macron announced, he agreed with Erdogan that the ceasefire must be observed.

    The withdrawal of foreign fighters and mercenaries from Libya should begin in the summer.

    "This is an important step forward," said Macron.

    Macron was silent about the Turkish search for mineral resources, even if they are in EU waters.

    At the height of the conflict, he had sent a warship to the eastern Mediterranean to create a threat against Erdogan.

    But now the two presidents have cleared another issue from the table: how to deal with Islam. The background was Erdogan's serious allegations against Macron of inciting Islamophobia in France. After the Islamist terrorist attack on the teacher Samuel Paty, Macron defended freedom of expression and sided with those who want to show or publish cartoons. Erdogan then called for a boycott of French products.

    The climate became even more icy when the French government adopted a binding charter of values ​​for Islamic associations in early 2021. The two most important Turkish associations in France refused to sign the charter and to commit to basic values ​​such as free choice of religion and equality between men and women. At the same time, the French government worked to ensure that the construction of a new Turkish mosque in Strasbourg is not subsidized by the state. Macron expressed fears that Erdogan could influence the next elections through his network of Turkish citizens in France. "I have clarified many issues that led to misunderstandings and attacks," said Macron on Monday.