Erdogan breaks his protocol: NRW Minister-President Wüst received at the Presidential Palace

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When the Turkish president invites someone for a talk at his palace in Ankara, heads of state, prime ministers or the German chancellor are usually at the table – but not a state premier of a German federal state. Recep Tayyip Erdogan has now broken this protocol: he surprisingly received North Rhine-Westphalia's state premier Hendrik Wüst for a personal meeting.

What might interest you here: Wüst is on a three-day trip to Turkey. The official occasion is the 65th anniversary of the German-Turkish guest worker agreement. That a meeting with Erdogan would come out of it was not on anyone's radar beforehand.

Why the encounter is considered unusual: In Ankara, the president usually only receives "his equals – that is, heads of state, prime ministers or also the federal chancellor," as Handelsblatt puts it. The fact that he makes an exception for Wüst is interpreted by observers as a political signal.

What is known so far about the meeting

According to Tagesschau, Wüst has traveled to Turkey for three days. At the center of the trip is the anniversary of the guest worker agreement, which was concluded in 1961 between the Federal Republic and Turkey. The meeting with Erdogan came as a surprise to many – it was apparently not on the official agenda.

Focus and Handelsblatt report in agreement that the meeting took place in the Presidential Palace in Ankara. Nothing is known about concrete content or results of the meeting from the available sources.

Why an NRW minister-president stands out diplomatically

You may be wondering why Wüst of all people is traveling to Ankara: NRW is the federal state with the highest proportion of citizens with a Turkish migration background. This gives the state a special connection to the guest worker agreement and subsequent generations.

The symbolism of the meeting is clear: Erdogan receives a top German politician at the highest level – that is unusual, but not without value. Wüst, in turn, gets a direct line to Ankara. About concrete topics – from the economy to migration to security – one can only speculate based on the available sources, so we stick to the facts here.

Classification: What is established so far – and what is not

What is certain: Wüst is officially traveling to Turkey because of the 65th anniversary of the guest worker agreement and met with Erdogan in the process. According to all three available reports, what was surprising was primarily that this meeting came about. Not known from the sources: the duration of the conversation, the participants on the Turkish side, and possible agreements or arrangements.