US thanks Türkiye for efforts on Ukrainian crisis

Sevil Erkuş – ANKARA

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken thanked his Turkish counterpart Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu for Türkiye’s support to Ukraine’s sovereignty, along with its efforts to continue export of Ukrainian grain to the world markets, the U.S. ambassador said on Jan. 19.

“Blinken thanked Çavuşoğlu for Türkiye’s work with grain initiative and its strong, consistent support for Ukrainian sovereignty,” U.S. Ambassador to Türkiye Jeff Flake told a group journalist while elaborating a meeting of the top diplomats in Washington.

Speaking ahead of his meeting with the Turkish minister on Jan. 18, Blinken said, “I again want to commend the exceptional role and leadership that Türkiye showed in getting the so-called Black Sea grain corridor up and running to make sure that grain could get out of Ukraine and to people who desperately need it around the world.”

The proposed F-16 fighter jet sale to Türkiye that is awaiting the U.S. Congress’ approval and NATO accession of Finland and Sweden were also on the agenda of their meeting, said the envoy.

Ambassador Flake stated that there is no link between the sales of F-16 jets to Türkiye and the latter’s ratification process of Finland and Sweden’s NATO bid.

The administration is supportive in this arms sale to Türkiye, the ambassador said.
Flake underlined that, however, some members of the U.S. Congress attach importance for the accession of the Nordic countries to the Alliance.

“There is no linkage there… Having said that, a number of members of Congress feel very strongly about the accession issue,” Flake said when asked about the U.S. position on the issue.

Drawing attention to broader consensus at the Congress about NATO accession of Finland and Sweden, the ambassador noted that both Democrats and Republicans are on the same page.

Türkiye’s request for procurement of F-16 jets and Greece’s request to purchase F-35 aircraft were submitted around the same time, but they are not linked either, Flake emphasized.

US stands against normalization with Assad

Washington stands against efforts for normalization of ties with the Assad regime considering what Syria has done to its own people since the civil war erupted in 2011, the ambassador said. “We are still opposed to that,” Flake said when asked about the U.S. position on recent rapprochement efforts between Ankara and Damascus.

The dialogue between the U.S and Türkiye on the issue of Syria, particularly with regards to northern Syria continues, he also stated.

Türkiye is an important partner in the fight against ISIL, the ambassador stressed noting that there had been some differences between Ankara and Washington on the anti-ISIL campaign, but the dialogue is still productive.
“There are differences that we have. We voice those. They voice their differences with us. But it is a productive dialogue,” Flake stated.