Top US commander in Ankara may request support for Daesh encounter

Army Gen Joseph Votel, new head of US Central Command, made a surprise visit to Turkey nearly two days after his secret visit to Syria, where he met with senior fighters and US military advisors to assess armed groups battling Daesh.

Votel arrived in Ankara late Sunday. Officials said Votel has met with Yaşar Güler, the deputy chief of general staff. He is expected to meet also with senior officials at the Foreign Ministry.

There is no officials statement on his visit but Votel is very likely to request for a possible offensive targeting Raqqa, the Daesh stronghold. Officials in Ankara do not have any plan to support any operation against the extremist group.

On Saturday's visit to Kobani, Votel huddled with leaders of Syrian Democratic Forces, an umbrella group of Kurdish and Arab fighters trained by US military advisors in the ongoing combat against Daesh.

He became the highest-ranking US officer known to have entered Syria since the US began its campaign to counter Daeshin 2014, according to The Guardian.

Votel has spent 11 hours in Syrian border town Kobani where he conferred with senior fighters commanding People's Protection Units (YPG), a Kurdish armed group fighting together with Syrian Democratic Forces.

His visit has intended as a first-hand look at efforts to build cohesive alliances of Arab, Kurd and other local fighters to defeat Daesh.