U.S. Secretary of State, National Security Advisor to visit Turkey

ANKARA, Feb. 6 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster will visit Turkey next week, state-run Anadolu Agency reported Tuesday.

Tillerson and Mcmaster are expected to arrive in capital Ankara separately, a Turkish diplomatic source was cited by report.

The top U.S. officials' visits come amid recent heightened tension between the two NATO allies, with Turkey's ongoing military operation into the Syria's Afrin against the People's Protection Units (YPG), which Ankara considered as the Syrian affiliates of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a terrorist organization listed by Turkey, the U.S., and the EU.

The operation and the U.S. presence in Syria's Manbij, where Turkey has vowed to extend its operation , are expected to be discussed during the meeting, said local Daily Sabah.

Last year, Tillerson visited Ankara on March 30 and Istanbul on July 10. Enditem