ANKARA: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken headed straight into talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after landing in Ankara on Thursday, a US official said.
The plane touched down at 8:14 p.m. (1714 GMT), an AFP correspondent traveling with him said. Blinken headed straight into talks with Erdogan “in the VIP lounge” at Ankara’s Esenboga airport, the US official said.
Washington’s top diplomat flew in from the Jordanian Red Sea resort of Aqaba where he kicked off a regional tour on Thursday to discuss fallout from the ouster of Syria’s Bashar Assad.
Turkiye was expected to put heavy emphasis on its security concerns following the upheaval in Syria, where it has been fighting a Kurdish-led force that Washington backs as a key player in the fight against Daesh group militants.
Before leaving Aqaba, Blinken said the role of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) was “critical” to preventing a resurgence of Daesh militants in the country.
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Blinken meets Erdogan for talks in Turkiye
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Blinken meets Erdogan for talks in Turkiye
- The plane touched down at 8:14 p.m.
- Blinken headed straight into talks with Erdogan
New conference due in February to support Lebanese armed forces, says France
- Thursday’s talks in Paris were focused on how to show progress regarding the disarming of Hezbollah
PARIS: The political parties holding a meeting in Paris on Thursday all agreed to have a conference in February aimed at supporting the Lebanese armed forces, said a French foreign ministry spokesperson.
The spokesperson added that Thursday’s talks in Paris were focused on how to show progress regarding the disarming of Hezbollah.
French, Saudi Arabian and American officials were holding talks with the head of the Lebanese army on Thursday in Paris aimed at finalizing a roadmap to enable a mechanism for the disarmament of the Hezbollah group.
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