Foreign ministers of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) will convene in Istanbul this weekend against the backdrop of an escalating military conflagration between Israel and Iran, with the spotlight firmly on Türkiye to take the lead in diplomatic efforts to diffuse the situation in the volatile region.

Israel’s twin assaults on Iran and Gaza are expected to dominate the two-day summit, during which Türkiye will assume the one-year rotating chairmanship of the OIC, the second-largest intergovernmental organisation after the United Nations with 57 member-states.

Türkiye’s top diplomat Hakan Fidan will inaugurate the event.  

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi is likely to attend the summit, which is expected to deliver more than a statement of condemnation.

And political analyst and communications strategist Klaus Jurgens expects Türkiye to play the crucial role of a trusted negotiator.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if Türkiye uses this opportunity to put its 360-degree foreign policy approach into action within the OIC – bringing peace, security, poverty alleviation, Islamic finance, science and technology, and even climate change to the agenda,” Jurgens tells TRT World.

“We must also remember that the OIC was established in the Autumn of 1969 following an attack on the Al Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem. So from its inception, it has had not only a religious but also a wider political mission.” 

A trusted mediator

Over the past decade, Türkiye has emerged as a successful third-party mediator in global conflicts. From hosting Somalia-Somaliland peace talks in the 2010s to brokering the 2022 Black Sea Grain initiative between Russia and Ukraine, Ankara has shown it can bring opposing sides to the table, even amid ongoing warfare.

In 2024 alone, Türkiye mediated the high-stakes negotiations in a complex maritime access dispute between Ethiopia and Somalia, culminating in the Ankara Declaration, which secured Ethiopia’s sea access while respecting Somali sovereignty. 

Ankara has also been actively engaged in mediation offers in the Horn of Africa, including in the Tigray conflict and the Ethiopia-Egypt water dispute.

Now, with its deepening ties across the Islamic world, Türkiye could be uniquely positioned to offer a platform for dialogue in the Middle East, particularly at a time when most other international actors have proven either compromised or ineffectual, though it’s not an easy task.

According to Francesco Rizzuto, a Professor of Law at Liverpool Hope University, Ankara will offer itself as the moderating voice, though neither the US nor Israel seem interested in moderation. 

“The UN, in this context, is essentially paralysed, largely because the US would almost certainly veto any resolution condemning Israel. Still, I expect there will be an emphasis on the need to de-escalate the conflict, both in Gaza and concerning Iran (in the summit),” Rizzuto tells TRT World.

Rizzuto also believes there will likely be an implicit acknowledgment that it is the US that is dragging the region into further conflict.

“While it may appear that Israel is pressuring Washington to act, it's quite clear that without unconditional US support in terms of weaponry, Israel would struggle to sustain operations across multiple fronts,” he explains.

The summit comes at a time when more than 55,600 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since October 7, 2023, entire neighbourhoods reduced to rubble, and hundreds of thousands of Palestinians facing famine-like conditions. 

Israel’s escalating cross-border strikes with Iran have added a new layer of volatility to the region, threatening to trigger a wider war with global consequences.

Over the past week, tensions between Iran and Israel have erupted into the most direct and dangerous confrontation the region has seen in decades. On June 13, Israel launched large-scale air strikes on Iran, hitting key nuclear and military facilities in Arak, Natanz, and Isfahan and killing high-ranking officials and nuclear scientists. 

Tehran responded by retaliating with a barrage of ballistic missiles on Israeli cities, including Tel Aviv and Beersheba, which have met with further Israeli strikes on oil depots and security compounds.

What's at stake

With Gaza on the brink of total collapse and regional war no longer a distant threat, the OIC’s Istanbul summit may be one of the last remaining multilateral forums capable of shifting the region’s trajectory. 

While a shared sense of outrage toward Israel’s actions is expected from the OIC states, divisions persist over what course of action should be taken regarding Iran.

Jurgens, however, argues that inaction is no longer an option.

“There comes a point in history when a nation, and an organisation, must take a stand, especially when faced with injustice, cruelty, and genocidal attacks.”

“We are in such a moment now. And we must speak out clearly and urgently. Let’s hope the Istanbul summit and Türkiye’s chairmanship will lead to exactly that, a unified and immediate response,” Jurgens adds.

The OIC meeting is also expected to vote on a raft of decisions in the Istanbul Declaration, adopted by the OIC in 2022 to combat Islamophobia.