March 7 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama will visit Turkey within about a month, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said today in the Turkish capital Ankara as she held talks with leaders of the NATO ally.

The details of the visit haven’t been decided, she told reporters after a meeting with her Turkish counterpart, Foreign Minister Ali Babacan. Clinton said planning wasn’t advanced enough to determine whether it would be the occasion for Obama’s promised address from a Muslim capital during his first 100 days in office. Obama is planning a European visit in early April.

The visit is a “demonstration of the very high value that the president and I place on the relationship with Turkey,” she told women interviewing her during the taping of a television show similar to the American program “The View.”

The Obama administration will draw on the partnership with Turkey to stabilize neighboring Iraq and carry out its pledge to withdraw most U.S. troops next year. Turkey also has mediated indirect talks between Israel and Syria and has offered to help in Israeli-Palestinian negotiations.

“A peace between Syria and Israel, normalization of relations is something that would be part of an agenda of a comprehensive peace effort” for the Middle East, Clinton said. “We will consult closely with Turkey as we move forward.”

Iraq, Afghanistan

Clinton credited Turkey with providing trade and investment to help rebuild the economy of northern Iraq, and for contributing to the NATO-led military campaign against the Taliban and al-Qaeda in Afghanistan. She recalled that the officer who greeted her when she first went to Afghanistan in 2003 was Turkish.

“Turkey has been major contributor to the ongoing struggle to stabilize Afghanistan,” Clinton told reporters.

Babacan said the talks also touched on energy security, the fight against Kurdish rebels across the border in northern Iraq and Turkey’s aspiration to become a member of the European Union.

On Iraq, Clinton said it’s too early to talk publicly about whether and how the U.S. would rely on Turkey for its military exit.

“We will consult with and seek advice from a NATO ally like Turkey about the safest and most effective means of withdrawing our troops,” Clinton said.

G-20 Summit

Obama’s visit may coincide with his plan to attend the 60th anniversary meeting of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization on the Franco-German border on April 3-4, and a summit of the Group of 20 industrial and developing nations in London on April 1-2.

Obama is currently scheduled to conclude his European trip on April 5 with a meeting of European Union leaders in Prague.

Clinton’s stop in Ankara was the last on a one-week tour of the Middle East and Europe that combined diplomatic talks with public outreach. She met with women’s and youth groups in Jerusalem and Ramallah in the West Bank, and conducted a town hall-style forum with interns and staff of the European Parliament in Brussels.

Her appearance on the Turkish television production “Haydi Gel Bizimle Ol” featured a mix of discussion of political and social issues, including Turkey’s modernization and personal reflections on how she maintains a private life as a very public persona.

“It’s not easy, but I work really hard to find those quiet times when the spotlights aren’t on,” she said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Steve Bryant in Ankara at Sbryant5@bloomberg.net; Viola Gienger in Ankara via the Washington newsroom at vgienger@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: March 7, 2009 11:41 EST