Turkish President Holds Phone Conversation with Donald Trump

The Turkish Presidential Office announced that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held a phone conversation on Thursday with former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.

According to the office's statement: "The meeting discussed the assassination attempt on Trump and what happened after it. President Erdogan once again condemned the assassination attempt on Donald Trump and expressed his regret for the attack and wished Trump a speedy recovery."

The statement noted that "President Erdogan described the assassination attempt as an 'attack on democracy.' He said that 'Trump's courageous stance' after the heinous attack 'was admirable,' and that the continuation of his programs without interruption strengthens democracy, and this should be seen as 'an indication of confidence in the foresight of the American people.'"

Erdogan said that "(Trump showed strong leadership ability) through the calm messages of unity he sent in order to reduce polarization and tension after the assassination attempt, and congratulated Donald Trump on his official nomination as the Republican Party's candidate for the US presidency."

The Turkish president expressed his hope that the US presidential elections scheduled for November would be beneficial for the American people and Turkish-US relations.

Former US President and current Republican presidential candidate  Donald Trump was the target of an assassination attempt while addressing supporters as part of his election campaign in Pennsylvania , last Saturday.

The accident resulted in the death of one person and the injury of others, in addition to a minor injury to Trump, who was transferred to the hospital as a result.

Trump described his survival of the assassination attempt as a miracle, and likened it to feeling like "being bitten by the world's biggest mosquito ," noting that his head had saved him from being fatally shot.

The US Secret Service said it killed the shooter, while the FBI identified  the Trump shooter as  20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks.