Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has highlighted the need for an agreement between Iran and the US, as both have the will to engage in negotiations following a period of air strikes and heightened tensions.
Regarding the conflict that began with Israel's attacks on Iran, Fidan said, “As you know, we are both closely following and involved in all developments in the region. Most of the time, as mediators. Because it is in our interest and the interest of our region that wars do not break out and that existing ones come to an end.”
He noted that he said in the first week of the attacks on Gaza that “a war between Iran and Israel was coming,” adding that "Israel's attack on Iran pushed Iran into a position of legitimate defence, and it became clear that Israel is not as powerful a country as it claims to be in terms of destroying Iran's nuclear capabilities.” It only exposed its reckoning.”
Fidan noted that domestic political moves by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also played a role in Israeli foreign policy.
He said the world saw that “there is a political mind there that does not hesitate to set the region on fire for its interests.”
“This war has been temporarily halted after 12 days, but there is a ceasefire based on the assumption that nuclear capabilities have been eliminated. The region needs to be on alert against the possibility of the ceasefire being broken and mutual attacks resuming,” said Fidan.
‘Huge cost’
Emphasising that the war imposed a huge cost, not only on the two countries but also on the region, Fidan said, "As you know, there is a distance of over 1,000 kilometres between the two countries, and there is no border. Therefore, it is a war that crosses borders and involves different countries. There is currently a period of silence, but to make this more permanent, an agreement between Iran and the United States is necessary."
Fidan stated that the nuclear issue is only one aspect of the ongoing process between Israel and Iran, and there are other factors involved.
”It is clear that as a result of the military operation carried out by the United States, the nuclear facilities in Iran have been largely damaged and rendered unusable,” he said.
Noting that the nuclear programme has many components and the facilities have been severely damaged, Fidan acknowledged that there was a "clear and serious" blow to Iran’s nuclear program.
Fidan responded to a question about allegations that he received a call from US Secretary of State Marco Rubio the night Israel attacked Iran, saying that “such a conversation took place.”
He said the US conveyed that “since they did not take part in the attack, they had no role in it, and therefore the Iranians should not attack them, and if they did, they would respond very harshly.” He also said that the US mentioned “some issues regarding their concern for the safety of the American presence in the region”.
Fidan said the US then contacted the Iranians and conveyed that “the US would not play a role in the event of an attack, and therefore they did not want the US to intervene in a way that would draw them into the war, acting as a mediator.”
Regarding claims that Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian would meet in Türkiye, Fidan said, “Let me say this: Due to the trust in our president's leadership, the most advanced proposals and situations were brought to the agenda, but I will not comment on them.”
‘No one trusts anyone’
Responding to a question about whether the US would get involved in the situation following Israel's attacks on Iran and if Araghchi would make his first statement on the matter in Türkiye on June 21, Fidan said, "When we met with our Iranian counterpart on Saturday, the Americans were not at war.
"The next day, when we spoke with our Iranian colleague, our basic advice was, of course, to first understand what the Americans' intentions were. Is it a totally destructive war, or is it limited to nuclear facilities? It seems that it is limited to nuclear facilities.
This is part of Iran's strategy, as has been seen before. In our meeting, I saw that he also conveyed this message: 'If this limited activity remains as it is, our response will also be limited.'
“This was an important message. We conveyed this message. Of course, Iran discussed this internally. They reached a point. And then, as Mr Trump himself stated in his own post (on social media), through mutual communication and agreement, it became a matter of 'you hit my spot, I will hit yours, but I will limit myself to this spot.'
Fidan pointed out that sanctions were imposed as a result of a vote on Iran's nuclear resources years ago, saying, "There is also another balance: the five permanent members are all nuclear-armed countries, and it is impossible for them to agree on anything in the current situation.
“However, they agree on not allowing a sixth country to possess nuclear weapons. But there is no effort to reduce the number to four, three, or two. Because, in the end, no one trusts anyone."
