Erdogan, Biden meet in New York

By Azernews

By Gunay Hasanova

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met U.S. Vice President Joe Biden on September 21 on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meetings, Anadolu Agency reported.

The White House said in a statement that Biden “reiterated his unshakeable support for Turkish democracy and praised the Turkish people's commitment to democratic institutions and the rule of law”.

Biden also pledged that the U.S. would provide assistance to Turkey in its investigation into “the illegal and violent coup attempt” there this summer.

Biden visited Turkey in August amid tensions between Washington and Ankara regarding the extradition of the U.S.-based Gulen, who is accused of masterminding the bloody failed coup attempt in Turkey in July.

Turkey has asked the U.S. to hand over the leader of the Fethullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), a network within the Turkish state that carried out the July 15 coup attempt.

The vice president also condemned the PKK terror group’s violence against Turkish security forces and civilians.

The sit-down at the Peninsula Hotel occurred on the same day Secretary of State John Kerry asked the UN Security Council to ground all aircraft flying above opposition-held areas in Syria to allow aid to flow to besieged areas. Turkey has pushed for a no-fly zone in Syria.

Most observers believe Erdogan and Biden also discussed the situation in Syria and Operation Euphrates Shield launched by Turkey last month in northern Syria to clear Daesh along the Turkish border.

Earlier, during his visit to Turkey Biden said that Turkey and the U.S. will continue the joint fight against militants of the “Islamic State” terrorist organization.

On August 24 morning, the Turkish Air Force with the support of the coalition aircraft launched an operation to liberate the city of Jarabulus from the IS militants in northern Syria, near Aleppo city.

The operation was carried out under the name “Shield of the Euphrates.” Jarabulus is located 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the Turkish-Syrian border.

Syria has been suffering from an armed conflict since March 2011, which, according to the UN, has so far claimed over 500,000 lives.

Militants from various armed groups are confronting the Syrian government troops. The “Islamic State” (IS, ISIL, ISIS or Daesh), the YPG and the PYD are the most active terrorist groups in Syria.