President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Friday urged the sides in Iran war to seize the two-week cease-fire as an opportunity to secure lasting peace.
“I believe the window of opportunity opened by the ceasefire should be used in the most effective way to establish lasting peace,” Erdoğan said at the opening of the three-day Antalya Diplomacy Forum at the Mediterranean resort.
“No matter how deep the disagreements may be, we must not allow words to be replaced again by weapons,” he said, adding that “the shortest cut to peace is constructive dialogue and diplomacy”.
The foreign ministers of Türkiye, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt were due to meet later on Friday on the sidelines of the forum, with the war and the blockade of the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz expected to dominate discussions.
Erdoğan was due to meet with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on the margins later Friday.
Türkiye, a vocal critic of Israel, has joined diplomatic efforts with Egypt and Pakistan to help secure a cease-fire in the conflict, while maintaining that the truce should also apply to Lebanon.
Erdoğan did not comment directly on the latest cease-fire reached between Israel and Lebanon but warned against attempts to derail talks.
“We must be prepared and vigilant against Israel’s attempts to dynamite the negotiation process,” he said.
Turning to the Strait of Hormuz, Erdoğan said access to the waterway must not be restricted.
“One side of Hormuz is Iran, while the other side is Oman. The right of Gulf countries to access open seas must not be restricted,” he told the forum, calling for freedom of navigation “based on established rules” and for the strait to remain open to commercial vessels.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, who speaking ahead of Erdoğan warned against Israel’s expansionist policies, was scheduled to meet his counterparts from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt on the margins of the forum.
Ukraine, Syria
Erdoğan also addressed the Russia-Ukraine war, saying Türkiye is ready to host negotiations and a possible leaders’ summit for a lasting peace in Eastern Europe.
On Syria, Erdoğan lauded Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s efforts to restore peace and stability in Syria following the ouster of Bashar Assad in December 2024 and reiterated Ankara’s support to Damascus and the Syrian people.
