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ISTANBUL (AP) 鈥� U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio 鈥渞equested Turkey鈥檚 support for peace in Ukraine鈥� during his first meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, the State Department said late Tuesday.

Fidan is on a two-day trip to Washington, where he is seeking to shore up Turkey-U.S. ties that became increasingly frayed under Joe Biden鈥檚 presidency. The visit follows a telephone call between the countries鈥� presidents that Donald Trump鈥檚 special envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff described as 鈥渢ransformational.鈥�

Turkey has maintained close ties with Russia and Ukraine during the three-year war and has previously offered to mediate talks. It hosted unsuccessful peace talks in 2022. Under the Biden administration, Ankara鈥檚 ongoing trade with Russia drew repeated warnings from Washington.

Rubio and Fidan discussed efforts to establish a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, Turkey鈥檚 state-run Anadolu Agency reported, adding that Ankara supported U.S. initiatives.

Rubio also 鈥渆ncouraged even greater economic partnership鈥� between the NATO allies, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Fidan will hope to make progress on removing U.S. sanctions on Turkey as well as allowing it to rejoin the F-35 fighter jet program, which it helped develop with other NATO partners before it was kicked out in 2019.

During his first term, Trump also imposed sanctions on Turkey over its acquisition of Russian S-400 air defense missile systems. Further technical talks would be held to resolve 鈥渆xisting problems,鈥� Anadolu reported.

While the Anadolu report cited 鈥渄iplomatic sources,鈥� the U.S. statement did not mention defense issues.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is facing nationwide protests over the imprisonment of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu and other opposition figures. The State Department鈥檚 Bruce said Rubio had 鈥渆xpressed concerns鈥� over the arrests and demonstrations.

Trump鈥檚 lack of emphasis on the human rights records of U.S. allies is likely to have emboldened Erdogan鈥檚 move against Imamoglu, the main challenger to his 22 years in power, analysts say. In the immediate aftermath of the mayor鈥檚 arrest last week, Bruce said the administration would 鈥渘ot comment on the internal decision-marking processes of another country.鈥�

Trump鈥檚 conciliatory approach to Moscow, moreover, has also stoked Ankara鈥檚 hopes of improved ties with the White House, while the countries鈥� presidents seem to enjoy a warm relationship.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a good country and its leader is good,鈥� Anadolu reported Trump as saying Tuesday at a reception for Tom Barrack, the new U.S. ambassador to Ankara.

Rubio and Fidan also discussed the need to cooperate over stability in Syria, where Turkey is playing in leading role, as well as the need to secure a lasting peace between Turkey鈥檚 other neighbors Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Ankara supported rebels fighting now-deposed President Bashar Assad鈥檚 forces throughout the 14-year Syrian conflict and now has close ties to the new administration. In particular, it has offered to help ensure security in Syria, as well as help rebuild the war-ravaged country.

Anadolu said that Fidan stressed the need for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza to help bolster regional stability. Erdogan鈥檚 government is a long-standing backer of Hamas, considered a terrorist organization by Israel and Western governments, including the U.S. Erdogan has been an outspoken critic of Israel鈥檚 policies toward the Palestinians, strongly denouncing Israel鈥檚 military actions.