The US Secretary of State is going to Turkey today for an official visit Anthony Blinken and will hold talks on ways Washington can further assist Ankara in its efforts to deal with the aftermath of the recent devastating earthquake, which killed tens of thousands of people in the country and left more than a million homeless along with an economic cost expected to run into the billions of dollars.

The agenda of the talks to be held by the US Secretary of State in Turkey is also expected to dominate the issue of delaying the candidacies of Sweden and Finland to join NATO, which Turkey has so far refused to ratify, saying that Stockholm in particular offers refuge to, as he characterizes them, members of terrorist organizations. Ankara has recently hinted that it will only approve Finland’s membership of the international body.

Blinken will fly to Incirlik Air Base in southern Turkey’s Adana province, from where he will conduct a helicopter tour of the quake-hit area. Then tomorrow, Monday, he will have bilateral talks with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu.

The US Secretary of State is also expected to meet with the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoganaccording to sources with knowledge of his visit schedule.

After the earthquake, the US sent a search and rescue team, medical supplies, concrete breakers and an additional $85 million in humanitarian aid funding to Turkey, which also covers Syria.

Blinken’s first visit to Turkey as secretary of state has been in the works for some time, but it comes two years after taking office, in stark contrast to some of his predecessors, including Hillary Clinton and Rex Tillerson, who they made the visit within the first three months of their term.

Analysts say the delay shows the strained nature of the relationship, which has worsened in particular since 2019, following Ankara’s purchase of Russian missile defense systems. Although the US has praised Turkey for some of its actions during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, it remains concerned about its close relationship with Moscow, experts say.