{"id":58522,"date":"2018-02-10T06:17:35","date_gmt":"2018-02-10T06:17:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=58522"},"modified":"2018-02-10T06:17:35","modified_gmt":"2018-02-10T06:17:35","slug":"tillerson-sees-tough-talks-with-turkey-others-on-mideast-trip","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/world-news\/tillerson-sees-tough-talks-with-turkey-others-on-mideast-trip.html","title":{"rendered":"Tillerson sees tough talks with Turkey, others on Mideast trip"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tillerson sees tough talks with Turkey, others on Mideast trip<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson expects to have tough talks during a five-nation trip of the Middle East next week, including in Turkey, where he will urge leaders to rein in an offensive in northern Syria, U.S. officials said on Friday.<\/span><\/p>\n

Briefing reporters on Tillerson\u2019s Feb. 11-16 trip to Jordan, Turkey, Lebanon, Egypt and Kuwait, U.S. officials acknowledged there would be difficult conversations at each stop.<\/span><\/p>\n

Jordanian leaders were upset when the United States recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and suspended some aid for the Palestinians.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tillerson\u2019s trip to Cairo, where he will meet Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to emphasize joint security cooperation, takes place just as Egypt has launched a major military offensive against militants on the Sinai peninsula.<\/span><\/p>\n

Egypt also faces a March 26-28 election in which Sisi has only a single, last-minute challenger who had previously said he supported the incumbent.<\/span><\/p>\n

In Kuwait, Tillerson will attend an Iraq reconstruction conference at which Washington does not plan to contribute any money. Still, he hopes to make headway toward ending a dispute between Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.<\/span><\/p>\n

Kuwait has sought to broker an end to the dispute triggered when the UAE, along with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt, cut off travel and trade ties with Qatar last June. They accused Qatar of supporting terrorism and their arch-rival Iran. Doha denies the charges and says the countries are trying to curtail its sovereignty.<\/span><\/p>\n

Turkey, a U.S. ally, has launched a military air and ground operation into the Afrin region in northwest Syria targeting the Kurdish YPG militia despite U.S. objections.<\/span><\/p>\n

The United States and Turkey are allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Yet they have diverging interests in the Syrian civil war, with Washington focused on defeating Islamic State and Ankara keen to prevent Syria\u2019s Kurds from gaining autonomy and fueling Kurdish insurgents on Turkish soil.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are urging them to show restraint in their operations in Afrin and to show restraint further along the line across the (border) in northern Syria,\u201d a U.S. State Department official told reporters in a conference call. \u201cThat\u2019s going to be a difficult conversation.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018REALLY TOUGH ISSUES\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Speaking of U.S.-Turkish relations, he added: \u201cLook it\u2019s difficult. The rhetoric is hot. The Turks are angry, and this is a difficult time to do business but it\u2019s our belief that there are still some very fundamental underlying shared interests.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The Turkish ambassador in Washington, Serdar Kilic, defended the Afrin operation, criticized the U.S. plea to the Turks to limit the scope of the operation and called on Washington to \u201ccease their support\u201d of the YPG.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are going to terminate that threat,\u201d Kilic told reporters in Washington.<\/span><\/p>\n

On Jan. 21, Jordan\u2019s King Abdullah told U.S. Vice President Mike Pence that Washington must rebuild \u201ctrust and confidence\u201d in a two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinians after President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel\u2019s capital.<\/span><\/p>\n

Speaking of the trip generally, the State Department official said: \u201dThese are really tough issues and these are going to be tough conversations.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThese are some of our closest partners but they are also partners with whom we are facing some of the toughest issues that we have to face in the region, whether its terrorism, whether it\u2019s the future of U.S. assistance, whether it\u2019s the final defeat of ISIS (the Islamic State militant group).\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In Egypt, all opposition figures thought to pose a serious challenge to Sisi have pulled out of the race, accusing the government of underhanded tactics to ensure Sisi an easy win. Sisi has said all candidates have an equal opportunity and that the election will be free and transparent.<\/span><\/p>\n

Another State Department official said Washington supported a \u201cgenuine and a credible electoral process\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAnd we have noted our concerns about the reports that Egypt\u2019s prosecutor general has launched an investigation into opposition figures ahead of the March 26th through 28th elections. These types of issues will be discussed on this visit,\u201d the official said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Source:-\u00a0https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/us-usa-tillerson-mideast\/tillerson-sees-tough-talks-with-turkey-others-on-mideast-trip-idUSKBN1FT2AS<\/span><\/p>\n

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