Clinton lauds strategic ties with Turkey

Security is the foundation of any stable and prosperous bilateral relationship, the U.S. secretary of state said in welcoming Turkish officials to Washington. Clinton welcomed delegates from the Turkish government for an annual conference on bilateral affairs. Ankara is seen as a strong U.S. ally in the region given its strategic position between Europe, Asia and the Middle East. The State Department last week said a delegation from the U.S. Defense Department was sent to Turkey to have bilateral consultations on how to strengthen U.S.-Turkish bilateral cooperation in the counter-terrorism field. The U.S. military in Iraq at the height of the war there had shared intelligence with Ankara about the outlaw Kurdistan Workers' Party, known by its Kurdish initials PKK. Clinton told Turkish delegates that Washington stands alongside Ankara as a partner in the fight against violent extremism. Security, she said, is the "foundation of stability and prosperity." She said that, through bilateral efforts, shipping lanes in the Mediterranean are safe, conflict in the Balkans is down and the region is, in general, secure. Washington, she added, "is elevating economic statecraft as a pillar of American foreign policy so we can continue to lead in a world where power is often exercised in boardrooms and on trading floors as much as in battle space."