Kerry in Turkey for Middle East talks

Published April 7th, 2013 - 08:44 GMT
US Secretary of State talks to US Foreign Service workers during Turkey visit (AFP Photo/ Paul J. Richards)
US Secretary of State talks to US Foreign Service workers during Turkey visit (AFP Photo/ Paul J. Richards)

US Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Turkey on Sunday for talks on Syria and the Israel-Palestine peace process, AP reported.

Kerry's also expected to promote an improvement in relations between Turkey and Israel, who were once strong regional allies but severed relations after Israel killed 9 Turkish citizens on board an aid flotilla headed for the Gaza Strip.

Tensions between the countries have eased after US President Barack Obama brokered a conversation between Israel's Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu and his Turkish counterpart Recap Erdogan, in which Netanyahu offered an apology for the flotilla deaths.

Kerry will meet Erdogan on Sunday evening, to discuss the worsening violence over Turkey's southern border in Syria.

He'll also visit Jerusalem for the second time in a month, for meetings with the Israeli and Palestinian leadership. Although the State Department has cautioned expectations of a breakthrough remain low, Kerry's visit is a sign of US commitment to moving the peace process forward.

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