Senior US diplomat Wendy Sherman to visit Turkey next week

WASHINGTON

Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman will travel to Turkey next week as part of a marathon diplomatic tour that will take her to Europe, and Southeast Asia, the State Department announced on Friday.

Sherman will depart May 25 for Brussels to meet with Belgian, EU and NATO officials before heading on to Turkey where in Ankara she will "engage with government officials and civil society," the department said in a statement.

"Deputy Secretary Sherman will underscore the importance of the U.S.-Turkey relationship as we work together with our NATO Ally to confront mutual challenges, and discuss areas of concern," it added.

Following Turkey, Sherman will depart for Southeast Asia where she will visit Indonesia, Cambodia, and Thailand before traveling to the US state of Hawaii.

In Southeast Asia Sherman will "reaffirm the United States’ commitment to ASEAN centrality and address a range of bilateral and regional issues, including efforts to urge the Burmese military to cease violence, release all those unjustly detained, and restore Burma to the path of democracy," the State Department said.

In Hawaii she will meet with United States Indo-Pacific Command to discuss strategy in the region.