Turkish and U.S. officials both highlighted the "enduring" nature of communication between their countries at the 39th American-Turkish Conference in Washington on Thursday,

"Türkiye and the United States have always been cooperating and consulting with each other," Deputy Foreign Minister Burak Akçapar said at a panel on the sidelines of the conference.

"They have issues that they disagree on but communications on all these channels have never gone away," Akçapar said.

Noting that he was "very much uplifted" by the positive atmosphere at the event, he said the "renewed energy" in the conference hall is also reflected in the respective institutions of both countries.

"We are the two largest armed forces in NATO," he said when explaining the nature of relations between Türkiye and the U.S.

Speaking at the same panel, U.S. Acting Under-Secretary for Political Affairs John Bass said Türkiye and the U.S. are on the "cusp of a new phase" in their relationship, adding that it starts with a return to "fundamentals," including "collective defense."

Bass said the two countries are also in discussions to explore new opportunities in areas including trade, the economy and climate.

He said the two NATO allies can also work together to address regional challenges and praised Türkiye's "important role" in the first two years of the Russian war in Ukraine.

"Türkiye will have a very important role to play as we work to bring this conflict to a close," Bass said.

In response to a question on a potential meeting between President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and U.S. President Joe Biden, Bass said Washington is looking forward to hosting Erdoğan for the upcoming NATO summit in the U.S. capital in July.

Last month, Erdoğan postponed a would-be first visit to the White House scheduled for May 9, citing his busy agenda.

‘Points of convergence’

Ankara-Washington relations have deteriorated in recent years over a string of issues, including Israel’s war on Gaza, defense cooperation and the fight against terrorism.

Ankara has long been critical of the U.S. stance on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, particularly Washington's unconditional support of the Netanyahu administration, which Erdoğan accused of committing war crimes in Gaza.

Türkiye also often voices disappointment with its historic ally over its support for the YPG, the Syrian branch of the PKK terrorist group, which has killed thousands in Türkiye over the past four decades.

According to Türkiye’s ambassador to the U.S., the two countries do not have the "luxury" of putting emphasis on said disagreements and must instead focus on "points of convergence."

Also speaking at a reception as part of the conference, Sedat Önal praised Türkiye and the U.S. as "two staunch NATO allies" with a friendship and solidarity that "stood the test of time."

Türkiye is surrounded by almost all "crisis flashpoints" around the world, Önal pointed out, citing the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, as well as other conflicts in the region including in Syria, Iraq, Libya and the South Caucasus.

"This is the environment in which we need to operate in coordination and cooperation with stakeholders like America to serve peace, security and stability in the region and beyond the region," Önal said.

"In such an environment, we do not have the luxury of putting the emphasis on our disagreements, we need to increase our convergences," he said.

"This is something that we are going to do in my tenure here, to try to increase points of convergence to address issues that are of common concern to us, but also very important for regional peace and security," he added.

Önal said that one important strong dimension of the Turkish-U.S. relationship is economic and commercial relations.

Speaking at the same reception, Trade Minister Ömer Bolat said he had a "constructive and fruitful meeting" with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, noting that they agreed to reach $100 billion in bilateral trade.

"Turkish-American relations will speed up and will be fostered in the near future, on all levels, from investment to trade, from services to industry, from financial cooperation to green economy cooperation. On all levels, we are ready to talk, we are ready to move ahead," Bolat said.