ANKARA, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson at the presidential complex in capital Ankara on Thursday amid two NATO allies being at odds on a couple of issues.

The meeting, which was closed to the media, started at 7:40 p.m. local time (1640GMT), according to the presidency.

Tillerson is also expected to meet his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusolu on Friday to discuss bilateral relations and international developments.

Ankara demands Washington to end supporting for the People's Protection Units (YPG), which is seen by Turkey as Syrian extension of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Yet, Washington falls on deaf ears on Turkey's concerns.

Turkey was the last stop of Tillerson's five-nation trip followed by his stops in Egypt, Kuwait, Jordan and Lebanon.