Turkey to tell Tillerson it wants to mend trust with US - Turkish FM
Turkey will tell U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson the two countries must repair damaged mutual trust, its foreign minister said on Feb. 6, following a series of disagreements, especially over the Syria crisis, The Hurriyet Daily News reported.
The source reminded that relations between the NATO allies have been strained by U.S. support for the People's Protection Units (YPG) in Syria.
Turkey is targeting the YPG in an air and ground operation in Syria's northwestern Afrin district launched two weeks ago.
Turkey's President Erdogan has promised to sweep the militants from Turkey's southern border, a move that could put Turkish troops in confrontation with U.S. forces on the ground in Syria.
"Our trust is damaged. We have to mend our trust. The contacts between us are important," Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told private broadcaster TGRT Haber in an interview.
"When Tillerson comes we will share these ideas with him sincerely, we will share our expectations," he said.
Turkish media earlier reported that Tillerson and U.S. National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster would both visit Turkey in the near future.