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Fri., May 12, 2017, 8:56 p.m.

Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan makes a statement prior to his trip to China, followed by a trip to Washington, in Ankara, Turkey, Friday, May 12, 2017. Erdogan said Friday he hopes that talks with U.S. President Donald Trump on his upcoming visit will constitute a new milestone for the troubled relations between the two NATO allies and will lead to a breaking point in the U.S. decision to arm Syrian Kurdish rebels. (Press Presidency Press Service / Associated Press)

ANKARA, Turkey Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed hope on Friday that his upcoming visit to Washington will constitute a new milestone for the troubled relations between the two NATO allies.

Speaking to reporters before leaving for trips to China and the United States, Erdogan said he was confident that talks with U.S. President Donald Trump next week would lead to a breaking point in the U.S. decision to arm Syrian Kurdish rebels.

Turkey has been angered by a U.S. decision to provide arms to Syrian Kurdish fighters that Turkey considers terrorists and a serious threat to its security. Turkey says the group is an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK.

Ties have also been strained by Turkeys demand for the extradition of U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen whom Turkey blames for last years failed coup attempt.

The U.S. considers the Syrian Kurdish fighters, known as the YPG, as the most effective group in the fight against Islamic State militants in their Syrian stronghold of Raqqa.

Turkey has called for the decision on arming the YPG to be reversed, criticizing what it calls a strategy of using one terrorist group to fight another. Turkey is also concerned about the possibility that the weapons could end up in the hands of the PKK.

I see this trip as a new milestone in Turkey-U.S. relations, Erdogan said. I want to consider all the information we have received so far (on U.S. arming Syrian Kurds) as hearsay And I think this trip will be a breaking point on this issue.

Hurriyet newspaper said Friday Erdogan would provide Trump with a list of weapons seized from the PKK that were allegedly given to the YPG by the United States or other NATO allies in the past for the organization to fight the IS group.

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Erdogan hopeful for breakthrough in dispute on arming Kurds - The Spokesman-Review