United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit earthquake-ravaged Turkey on Sunday (February 19) to discuss how the Joe Biden administration can assist Ankara in the aftermath of the natural disaster. A report by the news agency Reuters said that Blinken will land at the Incirlik Air Base in Adana, from where he would take a helicopter tour of the earthquake-affected area. On Monday, he would hold bilateral talks with Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.
Antony Blinken is also expected to hold a meeting with Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Reuters reported citing sources. Since a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck Turkey’s southeast and neighbouring Syria on February 6, the United States has sent a search and rescue team to Turkey, medical supplies, concrete-breaking machinery, and additional funding of $85 million in humanitarian aid which covers both Turkey and Syria.
On February 9, the US Agency for International Development (USAID) said that the additional funding supports its humanitarian partners to deliver urgently-needed aid for millions of people in Turkey and Syria. The USAID added it was providing emergency food and shelter for refugees and newly displaced people, winter supplies to help families brave the cold, critical health care services to provide trauma support and other assistance.
Nordic NATO bid on agenda
Apart from how Washington can help Turkey in the aftermath of the massive earthquake, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit also focuses on the stalled NATO bids of Sweden and Finland, which Ankara has so far refused to ratify. In 2022, Sweden and Finland applied to NATO after Russia launched its special military operation in Ukraine, but they faced objections from Turkey.
The relations between Turkey and Sweden have been sour due to Quran burning incidents in the latter country. Last month, Turkish President Erdogan warned Stockholm not to expect support for its bid for membership into NATO. Meanwhile, the Turkish government recently indicated that it would approve only Finland’s bid to join the intergovernmental military alliance
On Saturday, Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen said that allowing Finland to join the alliance alone would not be enough. “There will be no transfer of F-16s if Erdogan continues to deny admission to Finland and Sweden … He doesn’t get to have Finland in and the F-16s approved and I think that’s a broad sentiment,” Hollen said, Reuters reported.
(With inputs from agencies)
You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.
