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Blinken heads to earthquake-hit Turkey in first visit

The US secretary of state will view earthquake relief efforts at Incirlik Air Base and meet with his Turkish counterpart in Ankara.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (C) disembarks his plane at Paris-Le Bourget Aiport, north of Paris as he arrives for his visit to Paris, on March 8, 2022. (Photo by OLIVIER DOULIERY/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — When Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives in Turkey on Sunday, talks meant to focus on NATO expansion and other thorny issues will be clouded by the devastating earthquake from which the country is still reeling. 

Blinken’s six-day trip, which also includes stops in Turkey’s rival Greece and in Germany to attend the Munich Security Conference, was planned before the magnitude 7.8 earthquake left more than 43,000 people dead across Turkey and neighboring Syria. 

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