Biden holds talks with Turkey's Erdogan

2014-11-22 2

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STORY: U.S. Vice President Joe Biden held talks with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday (November 22) as part of a visit to Istanbul in which he also met with Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.

Earlier on Saturday, Biden spoke at the Atlantic Council summit, welcoming an agreement between Iraq's central government and its northern Kurdistan region over the management of oil exports, and on the issue of Ukraine, warning that Moscow should not use its energy resources as a political weapon.

Biden arrived in Istanbul on Friday (November 21) and held a joint news conference with Davatoglu, playing down differences in the fight against Islamic State.

"We've been friends for a long time and one of the great advantages of being back in Turkey with a friend and NATO ally is we're always direct with one another," he said.

Turkey has been a reluctant partner in the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State (IS) insurgents.