Readout of the Vice President's Call with Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan

Vice President Joe Biden spoke with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan today to discuss the situation in Iraq and Syria. The two leaders agreed that the advance of Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) extremists in Iraq poses a grave threat. The Vice President underscored that the United States deplores the actions taken by ISIL, calls for the safe and immediate return of all hostages, including the Turkish diplomatic personnel and civilians taken by ISIL, and supports efforts by the Iraqi people to work together to combat the ISIL threat. The Vice President and Prime Minister agreed on the need to continue consulting closely on the situation in Iraq and Syria in the days and weeks ahead.