Eyes on Turkey… High-Level US Visit to Earthquake Zone

A critical meeting will be held today, after the disasters of the earthquake that occurred on February 6 and in which more than 40 thousand people lost their lives. It has been announced that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Turkey today for official talks.

While international media organizations paid attention to this meeting, it was noted that Blinken’s agenda was intense. As the first item on the agenda, it was indicated that they would discuss how the US could provide assistance to Turkey, while the NATO membership process of Sweden and Finland would also be discussed.

Blinken is expected to meet with Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu tomorrow.

It was said that Blinken will land at the Incirlik air base in Adana and from there he will carry out helicopter inspections in the seismic zones. While Blinken is expected to meet his counterpart Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu tomorrow, some sources familiar with Blinken’s show told Britain’s Reuters news agency that the US minister could also meet with President Erdoğan.

After the earthquake, the US sent a search and rescue team to Turkey, as well as aid and medical equipment. The United States also stated that it has created an additional fund of $85 million for Turkey and Syria.

IT WILL BE THE FIRST VISIT

Hillary Clinton and Rex Tillerson, who took over this task before Blinken, who drew attention by not visiting Turkey despite being in office for 2 years, visited Turkey in the first 3 months of their duties.

Experts point to the S-400 crisis between the US and Turkey behind Blinken’s delay in his visit. Despite US objections, Turkey bought the S-400 air defense system from Russia in 2019 and got a great reaction.