Turkish, American top diplomats discuss bilateral ties

16 February 2021 16:50 (UTC+04:00)

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Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavushoglu held a phone call with his American counterpart Antony Blinken, a Turkish foreign ministry statement expressed on Monday, Trend reports citing Daily Sabah.

Congratulating Blinken for his new position as the secretary of the state, Cavushoglu stated to his counterpart that Turkey is willing to have a dialogue based on mutual respect with the new American administration.

According to the statement, bilateral relations were the talks' main agenda, in addition to some regional issues such as Syria, the Eastern Mediterranean, Turkey's S-400 missile purchase and the fight against terrorism, including the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) and the YPG/PKK.

Cavushoglu also let Blinken know Turkey's discomfort with America's latest controversial statement regarding a PKK terrorist attack against Turkish citizens in northern Iraq.

Blinken, on the other hand, reiterated its condolences for the deaths of Turkish hostages and said Washington believed "PKK bore responsibility," Reuters reported.

The two ministers agreed on having a more detailed dialogue on these topics in the coming days.