ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — US Senator Lindsey Graham met separately with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in Ankara on Friday to discuss recent events in Syria.
"President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham at the Presidential Complex," read an initial statement from the Turkish presidency.
Relations between the two strategic NATO allies were also touched on in the meeting with Cavusoglu.
"At our meeting [with] US Senator Lindsey Graham, [we] discussed recent developments in Syria and Turkey-US bilateral relations," tweeted Cavusoglu.
#ABD’li Senatör Lindsey Graham’la #Suriye bağlamındaki son gelişmeleri ve ikili ilişkilerimizi ele aldık.
— Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu (@MevlutCavusoglu) January 18, 2019
At our meeting w/ US Senator @LindseyGrahamSC, discussed recent developments in #Syria and #Turkey-#US bilateral relations. pic.twitter.com/cj2paXjPoh
The talks come after President Donald Trump announced earlier this month that he will withdrawal US forces from Syria. Then on Wednesday four Americans were killed in the northern Syrian city of Manbij.
Graham has been a critic of fellow Republican Trump's decision. He interrupted a confirmation hearing on an unrelated matter to get his remarks on the congressional record.
"My concern, by the statements made by President Trump, is that you set in motion enthusiasm by the enemy we're fighting. You make people we're trying to help wonder about us. And as they get bolder, the people we're trying to help are going to get more uncertain. I saw this in Iraq. And I'm now seeing it in Syria," he said following the attack.
Trump has not issued a statement or tweeted about the recent US deaths in Syria which were claimed by ISIS.
In a statement on Wednesday, Graham said US policy for Syria should be "slow" and "deliberate."
“I was in Manbij just a few months ago with Senator Shaheen meeting with Arabs, Kurds, Christians, and other groups who reject terrorism and do not want to be dominated by a foreign power," he wrote.
Graham is a member of three powerful Senate committees: Foreign Relations, Budget, and Appropriations. Additionally, the lawyer by trade is chairman of the Judiciary Committee.
Graham is a US Air Force veteran. He was in active service from 1982-1988 and a reserve until retiring as a colonel 2015.
This is a developing story... Update: 3:26 p.m.
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