CNN Political Ticker
March 7 2009

Obama to visit Turkey in April

ANKARA, Turkey (CNN) — President Obama will visit Turkey in April,
two senior administration officials told CNN on Saturday.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in Ankara on a diplomatic tour,
had said earlier in the day that Obama would visit Turkey soon.

Clinton was meeting with Turkish officials "to emphasize the work the
United States and Turkey must do together on behalf of peace,
prosperity and progress," she said.

Obama had said he was going to deliver a speech in a Muslim capital
within the first hundred days of his presidency. The visit to Turkey
will be his first to a Muslim country since he was inaugurated.

A senior Obama administration official said the visit would be "an
important opportunity to visit a NATO ally and discuss shared
challenges."

The official added that "it will also provide an opportunity to
continue the president’s dialogue with the Muslim world, a dialogue he
started immediately and intends to maintain throughout his
presidency."

The State Department on Saturday issued a joint statement from Clinton
and Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan reaffirming the close
U.S.-Turkish relationship.

Both countries pledged to pursue an Arab-Israeli peace settlement,
peace in the southern Caucasus region, normalization of
Turkish-Armenian relations and a settlement of the Cyprus question —
a dispute between Greek and Turkish Cypriots over territory.

They vowed to enhance the fight against terror groups such as al Qaeda
and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party and work to expand the natural gas
and oil infrastructure to help Caspian basin and Iraqi energy
producers reach European and world markets.

Turkey is a secular country and predominantly Muslim. It is a NATO
member and has been a longtime ally of the United States. It is one of
the few Muslim countries to have full diplomatic relations with Israel
and has long been the Jewish state’s closest military and economic
partner in the region.

Turkey recently mediated indirect peace talks between Israel and
Syria.

U.S. envoys Jeffrey Feltman and Daniel Shapiro met Saturday in
Damascus with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem, and Feltman
reported the talks were "constructive."

Feltman is the State Department’s top Middle East official. His is the
highest-level visit by a U.S. official since 2005.

Feltman, a deputy secretary of state, warned observers to "keep
expectations in check," but said the U.S. and Syrian officials "found
a lot of common ground."

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From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress