Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan advised Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to quit smoking in a joking conversation between the two on the sidelines of yesterday's Gaza summit in Egypt, the Turkish daily Hurriyet reported, quoted by BTA.
In a playful dialogue between the two, captured on video, Erdogan, who is well-known for his dislike of smoking and alcohol, tells Meloni that she looks great but he needs to "make her stop smoking".
"I know, I know", the Italian Prime Minister replied with a laugh.
The Turkish Leader's Remark Amused Both Meloni and French President Emmanuel Macron, who was standing nearby and overheard the conversation. "It's impossible", an amused Macron intervened.
The humorous exchange of remarks on the sidelines did not go unnoticed by journalists - the conversation was reported by a number of Italian and world media, including "Corriere della Sera", "Giornale", "Repubblica", "Politico", the Russian agency TASS, the Turkish newspapers "Milliyet", "Yeni Şafak" and a number of others.
The dialogue took place as world leaders awaited US President Donald Trump, whose late departure from his visit to Israel led to a three-hour delay in the Gaza peace meeting held in the Egyptian resort of Sharm El Sheikh, Hurriyet reported.