US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was on Sunday holding talks with Turkish leaders in İstanbul in a bid to iron out a series of disputes on issues ranging from Syria to last year's failed coup.
After arriving from Ukraine, Tillerson met in İstanbul with his Turkish counterpart Mevlüt Çavuşoglu and was later due to hold talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Çavuşoglu and Tillerson met for a working dinner at the Prime Ministry Office. The two diplomats discussed the civil-war torn Syria, the fight against terrorism as well as the Qatar crisis, Turkish state-run Anadolu news agency reported citing diplomatic sources.
'A MAN BORN WITH OIL IN HIS VEINS'
Tillerson, the former chief executive of energy giant Exxon Mobil, has accepted an award at the World Petroleum Congress, hosted by Turkey this year. Council President Jozsef Toth described Tillerson, who is from Texas, as "a man born with oil in his veins" before presenting him with the Dewhurst Award, named after the founder of the congress.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the oil conference, Tillerson also said the United States saw Turkey as a partner in its push for greater energy security in the region.
"We're all here in İstanbul at a momentous time. Nearly a year ago, the Turkish people, brave men and women, stood up against coup plotters and defended their democracy. I take this moment to recognise their courage and honour the victims of the events of July 15, 2016," Tillerson said.
'WASHINGTON HAS INTRODUCED A NEW STRATEGY ON SYRIA'
Turkey and the U.S. remain at odds over the inclusion of Kurdish forces in the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the US-backed group leading the fight to oust the Islamic State terror group from Raqqa. The United States maintains the SDF and YPG are its most effective partners on the ground in Syria. The Turkish government has been angered by Washington's decision to arm a Syrian Kurdish militant.
Tillerson’s discussions in İstanbul could include the news that the United States and Russia may cooperate more closely in Syria.
On Friday, the US news outlet The Daily Beast reported, citing Trump administration sources, that the White House has introduced a new strategy on Syria that includes expanded cooperation with Russia. Ahead of their meeting at the G20 summit in Hamburg, Tillerson and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov both suggested the news reports were valid.
Tillerson said that despite a number of unresolved issues, the two nations have the potential to coordinate actions in Syria. Lavrov for his part said he asked the United States to provide more details about proposed cooperation, and the reports, if true, would be a step in the right direction.
According to media reports, the White House will also agree to safe zones in Syria as proposed by Russia with Iran and Turkey. Tillerson said at the G20 summit on Friday that the United States, Russia, Jordan and Israel agreed to a ceasefire in Syria’s southeast beginning on Sunday.
Following a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, Tillerson told reporters the two leaders discussed Syria at length.
"By and large our objectives [in Syria] are exactly the same," he said.
