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ANKARA, Turkey (CNN) — President Obama plans to visit Turkey in about a month, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Saturday.
Clinton was holding talks in Ankara with 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. Clinton did not say that Obama would be making
such a speech during this visit. A senior Obama administration
official confirmed that Turkey will be the president’s first visit to a
Muslim nation since taking office, but did not provide dates for the
president’s upcoming visit to Turkey. This official did say 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.