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Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan spoke by telephone with Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Friday to discuss the deteriorating situation in South Asia as tensions between India and Pakistan continue to escalate.
During the call, Dar briefed Fidan on what he described as "India's continued illegal and unprovoked attacks on mosques, residential areas, and other religious places resulting in the loss of innocent civilian lives," according to diplomatic sources.
Dar emphasized that Pakistan "reserved the right to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity under the UN Charter and international law." Fidan conveyed condolences over the civilian casualties and expressed Türkiye's solidarity with Pakistan.
The conversation followed a meeting earlier on Friday between Türkiye's National Defense Minister Yasar Guler and Pakistan's Ambassador to Türkiye Yusuf Junaid in Ankara. The Ministry of Defense confirmed the meeting via social media, referring to Pakistan as a "friendly and brotherly country."
This high-level diplomatic engagement comes amid mounting tensions in South Asia, as deadly border clashes continue between India and Pakistan. A new round of cross-border fire along the Line of Control on May 8 resulted in at least five civilian deaths, with four on the Pakistani side and one on the Indian side.
The current crisis follows India's missile attacks on May 6, which New Delhi said targeted "terror infrastructure" sites in response to an April 22 attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 people. Pakistan reported 31 civilian deaths and 57 injuries from the Indian strikes.
On Thursday, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed Türkiye's readiness to help alleviate tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbors. Speaking at a press conference in Ankara, Erdogan referred to Pakistani civilian victims as "martyrs" and backed Pakistan's call for an international investigation into the initial terrorist attack.
"Despite those who pour fuel on the fire, we in Türkiye are making every effort to reduce tensions and open channels for dialogue before the situation reaches an irreversible point," Erdogan said.
Both nations have accused each other of using drones in recent days, with Pakistan claiming to have intercepted 29 Israeli-made Harop drones overnight.
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