Pentagon chief headed to Middle East, Europe

Defense Secretary James Mattis will travel to the Middle East and Europe beginning Saturday to “re-affirm the enduring U.S. commitment to strategic partnerships” with Jordan, Turkey and Ukraine, according to the Pentagon.

Mattis’s trip will emphasize the Trump administration’s commitment to fighting extremist terror organizations with help from strategic allies in the region.

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Mattis will first stop in Jordan on Monday to meet with King Abdullah II and Jordanian Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mahmoud Freihat, the Pentagon said in a statement Friday. 

“The secretary will express U.S. appreciation for Jordanian efforts to combat [the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria], and re-affirm U.S. commitment to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Jordan in facing regional and global challenges,” according to the Pentagon.

Mattis will then travel to Turkey on Wednesday to “emphasize the steadfast commitment of the United States to Turkey as a NATO ally and strategic partner, seek to collaborate on efforts to advance regional stability, and look for ways to help Turkey address its legitimate security concerns” including the fight against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

The PKK, which seeks an independent Kurdish state within the country, is considered a terrorist group by the Turkish government.

While in Turkey, Mattis will meet with Minister of National Defense Nurettin Canikli, Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlut Çavusoğlu and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Mattis’s final stop will be Kyiv, Ukraine, on Thursday. There, the secretary will meet with Minister of Defense Stepan Poltorak and President Petro Poroshenko.

“During these engagements, the secretary will reassure our Ukrainian partners that the U.S. remains firmly committed to the goal of restoring Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as strengthening the strategic defense partnership between our two countries,” according to the Pentagon.

The international trip is Mattis’s fourth since he was confirmed in January and is meant “to re-affirm key U.S. military alliances, to engage with strategic partners in the Middle East and Africa, and to discuss cooperative effort to counter destabilizing activities and defeat extremist terror organizations.”

This is Mattis’s first trip to Jordan and Ukraine and follows a tense week of national security meetings dealing with North Korean aggression and deciding on a war strategy for Afghanistan.