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President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Türkiye opposes military intervention against Iran and has communicated this position to all parties, warning that a new war targeting Tehran would benefit no one and destabilize the region.
"A new war targeting Iran will not benefit anyone; on the contrary, our region will lose," Erdogan told reporters aboard his plane returning from a working visit to Ethiopia.
"As Türkiye, we have conveyed to all our counterparts that we are against military intervention against Iran. We will continue to explain that such a military escalation and rising tension will drag our region into more uncertainty," he added.
The Turkish president also said he is in contact at the highest level with both Iran and the United States on the tensions between the two countries.
"I spoke with the Iranian president most recently. The very next day, I also had my conversation with U.S. President Trump. In all these talks, we discussed how we can find a way forward," he noted.
"We are a country that builds bridges and prepares the ground for peace, not one that builds walls and fuels conflicts. As long as the door of diplomacy is open, there is hope. We will preserve and strengthen this hope," Erdogan added.
Erdogan announced Türkiye will participate in the Gaza Peace Council meeting, with Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan representing the country as the gathering falls on the first day of Ramadan.
"The Gaza issue is, in my opinion, a test of conscience for humanity. We have clearly shown where we stand in this test from the first day," he noted.
"The suffering of our Palestinian brothers and sisters in Gaza must end now. The aim here should be to make the ceasefire permanent, deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza without interruption and strengthen the ground for a two-state solution," Erdogan added.
The president said Türkiye has clearly declared it will support any initiative that benefits the people of Gaza.
"I hope the Gaza Peace Council will contribute to the long-awaited lasting stability, ceasefire and ultimately peace in Gaza," Erdogan said.
President Erdogan also noted that Europe must include Türkiye in its defense and security mechanisms, arguing the continent cannot establish a functioning security equation without Ankara.
"The time has long come for Europe to include Türkiye in its current defense and security mechanisms," Erdogan said.
"The world is changing. How much longer can the European Union remain captive to narrow agendas in this era of rapid transformations? It is impossible to understand this," he added.
He called on Europe to remove "ideological barriers" preventing Türkiye's integration with the continent.
"If they intend to build a new defense architecture in Europe, it is obvious that doing so without Türkiye would be an insufficient effort," Erdogan noted.
The president highlighted the strength of the Turkish military within NATO.
"The Turkish army is today one of the largest and most effective armies within NATO. Our confidence in our army is complete. Thanks to this, we are a country that demonstrates its capabilities in the field, not just one that talks at the table," Erdogan noted.
"I hope everyone has now understood that Europe cannot speak of establishing a security equation with its feet on the ground without Türkiye," he concluded.
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