U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to visit Türkiye on Sunday to discuss support and review ongoing efforts to aid the Turkish government’s response to the devastating earthquakes in the country’s southeast, marking his first trip to the NATO ally, which has had turbulent relations with Washington.
Blinken will visit Incirlik Air Base, through which the United States has shipped aid, and then hold talks in the capital Ankara with his Turkish counterpart Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and other senior officials, State Department Spokesperson Ned Price said Wednesday.
Blinken will discuss “continued U.S. support to Türkiye and the Turkish people after the devastating earthquakes, as well as to further strengthen our partnership with Türkiye as a valued NATO ally.”
"Secretary Blinken will also thank the government of Türkiye for its support for cross-border aid to affected areas of Syria," Price added.
Additionally, the top U.S. diplomat will take part in the Munich Security Conference on Feb. 16, where he will address continued international aid for Ukraine as well as “assistance to Türkiye and the Syrian people, and our commitment to transatlantic security.”
After departing Türkiye, Blinken will visit the nation’s historic rival Greece, a fellow NATO ally, to meet with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias and opposition leader Alexis Tsipras.
The United States has flown in some 200 rescuers and contributed an initial $85 million in relief for Türkiye, deploying Black Hawk and Chinook helicopters to bring supplies to worst-hit areas.
At least 35,418 people have been killed and 105,505 injured in the earthquakes that rocked southern Türkiye last week, according to the latest figures.
On Feb. 6, the 7.7 and 7.6 magnitude earthquakes struck southern Türkiye, centered in Kahramanmaraş and shaking nine other provinces, Hatay, Gaziantep, Adıyaman, Malatya, Adana, Diyarbakır, Kilis, Osmaniye and Şanlıurfa, affecting more than 13 million people.
In Syria, at least 3,688 people were killed and over 14,749 injured.
Karen Donfried, the State Department's assistant secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, told reporters on a conference call that Blinken will express the "sincerest condolences" of the U.S. for the loss of life during his meeting with Çavuşoğlu "and discuss how the United States can strengthen our ongoing effort to provide assistance in coordination with the Turkish government."
The top diplomats will also hold a joint press conference in Ankara, and Blinken will visit Anıtkabir, the mausoleum of Türkiye's founder, to participate in a wreath-laying in honor of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, Donfried said.
Asked specifically if Blinken would meet with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Donfried said "I'm not giving you a full laydown on the schedule, but what I've shared with you is what we're sharing at this point."
The visit, which was planned before the earthquake, will be the first by Blinken to Türkiye after more than two years in office.
President Joe Biden was elected after promising to take a greater distance from Erdoğan but his administration has since viewed Türkiye as helpful for a mediatory role between Russia and Ukraine, including a deal to ship grain through the Black Sea to alleviate world shortages.
The Biden administration has voiced support for Türkiye's request to buy F-16 fighter jets but the sale is being blocked in Congress due to claims by some senators that Türkiye is “threatening” Greece.
The U.S. has been seeking ways to encourage Erdoğan to lift his objections to NATO membership by Sweden and Finland, which have shed earlier neutrality since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Türkiye has been the key holdout, with Erdoğan pressing Sweden to crack down on terrorist organizations like the PKK, its Syrian affiliate YPG, and the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ), as well as their sympathizers.
After signs of progress, Erdoğan renewed objections to Sweden after a far-right extremist politician torched Islam's holy book, the Quran, under police protection in front of Türkiye's Embassy in Stockholm.
The U.S. in recent years has also been angered by Türkiye's purchase of an advanced air defense system from Moscow, saying it could help NATO's primary adversary hone in on Western fighter jets.
Blinken is expected to discuss tensions with Türkiye when he travels to Athens, although the temperature has cooled since the earthquake as Greece provides extensive and ongoing assistance to its neighbor. He will also launch the fourth round of the U.S.-Greece Strategic Dialogue on Feb. 21.
