President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson met for more than three hours in Ankara on Thursday during which time they discussed several issues, including bilateral ties and regional developments, particularly Syria and Iraq, the Anadolu news agency reported.
According to a Turkish presidential source who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to the media, Erdoğan and Tillerson also exchanged views on the fight against terrorism.
During their meeting at the presidential complex, Erdoğan “explicitly” explained Turkey’s priorities and expectations from the US on bilateral ties and regional developments, the source added.
The meeting, which was closed to the press, lasted for three hours and 15 minutes.
Tillerson is on a two-day working visit to Turkey.
He is expected to meet with his Turkish counterpart, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, on Friday to discuss bilateral relations, particularly US support for the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), which Turkey views as the Syrian offshoot of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), and international developments. The meeting is expected to be followed by a joint news conference.