Kerry Begins Middle East, Asia Tour

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has arrived in Turkey at the start of a 10-day tour to be dominated by the crisis in Syria, the Middle East peace process and North Korea.

Kerry will meet Sunday with Turkish officials, including Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to discuss efforts to end the bloody civil war in Syria.

The top U.S. diplomat will later meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank. The State Department said he will push for confidence-building measures between the two sides.

Kerry will also visit Britain for a meeting of the Group of Eight (G8) industrialized nations. 

He then flies to South Korea, China and Japan, where talks will focus on North Korea's nuclear program and escalating threats against the U.S. and its allies.