Summit rehearsal in Ankara

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will meet in Ankara this weekend, the Turkish and Russian foreign ministries said.

Rice is arriving in Ankara on Feb. 5 as part of a tour to the Middle East and Europe. Rice and Lavrov will discuss preparations for a summit between U.S. President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Bratislava, Slovakia, on Feb. 24.

U.S. officials in Ankara said the Rice-Lavrov meeting was scheduled between Washington and Moscow, without any involvement on the part of Ankara and that the meeting was expected to cover U.S.-Russian relations. It was not clear why the two had chosen Ankara to meet, but Rice has a tight schedule, including visits to eight countries between Feb. 3-10, which may have forced her to meet Lavrov in Ankara, the stop closest to Moscow, officials commented.

The Rice-Lavrov meeting will be the first contact between the Russian foreign minister and Rice following her confirmation as U.S. secretary of state, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

At a time when the Turkish government is becoming increasingly vocal in its criticism of the United States over Iraq, Rice’s talks with President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Foreign Minister Abdullah Gül in Ankara are expected to be dominated by Turkish concerns over the continuing presence of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and Kurdish moves to dominate the oil-rich city of Kirkuk, along with many other issues.

“"The consultations are very important,” Foreign Minister Abdullah Gül said of the Rice visit. “We will cover all areas.”