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Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will attend a meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Baghdad on Saturday and Sunday, where Türkiye will hand over the organization's rotating chairmanship to Iraq, Turkish Foreign Ministry sources said Friday.
The meeting, held under the theme "Dialogue and Solidarity: Two Essential Pillars for Promoting Peace and Sustainable Development," will bring together representatives of OIC member states to discuss regional conflicts, security challenges and issues affecting Muslim communities worldwide.
Türkiye has held the rotating chairmanship since June 2025.
The agenda is expected to include Israel's policies in Gaza, its occupation and annexation activities in Palestinian territories, developments in other conflict zones across the Islamic world, counterterrorism, United Nations reform, Islamophobia and the situation of Muslim communities in countries outside the OIC.
The meeting is expected to conclude with the adoption of the "Baghdad Declaration."
Fidan is scheduled to address the gathering and hold bilateral talks with his counterparts on the sidelines.
In his address, Fidan is expected to describe Israel's military actions and expansionist policies as the greatest security threat facing the Middle East, according to Foreign Ministry sources.
He is also expected to call on OIC member states to adopt a united position against Israel's actions and coordinate their efforts with international partners.
The Turkish foreign minister will emphasize the need for decisive measures against countries that relocate their embassies to Jerusalem, as well as coordinated efforts to prevent further moves of this kind.
Fidan will also stress the importance of preserving Jerusalem's status and reiterate Türkiye's position that establishing an independent Palestinian state through a two-state solution is the only viable path toward a just and lasting peace.
He is expected to underline the need for humanitarian assistance to reach Gaza without interruption or restrictions.
Fidan will reiterate the call for stronger solidarity with Turkish Cypriots and support for efforts to end what Ankara describes as their unjust international isolation.
He will also emphasize the importance of OIC-led initiatives to protect the fundamental rights and freedoms of the Muslim Turkish minority in Western Thrace and the Muslim Turkish population of Greece's Dodecanese Islands.
On Syria, Fidan is expected to advocate continued cooperation among OIC members to preserve the country's territorial integrity and national unity, support economic recovery and contribute to long-term stability and prosperity.
Regarding Lebanon, he is expected to stress that protecting the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity is essential to regional stability.
He will also reaffirm Türkiye's position that Israel must withdraw completely from southern Lebanon.
Fidan is expected to address tensions in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, highlighting their consequences for regional security and particularly for Gulf countries.
He will describe attacks targeting Gulf states as unacceptable and emphasize the importance of protecting freedom and security of navigation in both the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
The waterways are critical routes for international shipping and energy supplies.
Fidan is also expected to strongly condemn Houthi attacks against civilians and critical infrastructure and reaffirm Türkiye's solidarity with Saudi Arabia.
Türkiye assumed the chairmanship of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers for its 51st session during a meeting in Istanbul on June 21-22, 2025.
The chairmanship will now pass to Iraq at the Baghdad gathering.
Türkiye is among the organization's 25 founding members and has previously hosted Council of Foreign Ministers meetings in 1976, 1991 and 2004.
Its Permanent Mission to the OIC began operations in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on July 24, 2015.
Türkiye also hosts the second-largest number of OIC-affiliated institutions after Saudi Arabia.
Among them are the Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Center for Islamic Countries (SESRIC), the Research Center for Islamic History, Art and Culture (IRCICA), and the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (COMCEC), one of the organization's four standing committees.
The Islamic Cooperation Youth Forum (ICYF) is also based in Türkiye.
The OIC, formerly known as the Organization of the Islamic Conference, was established Sept. 25, 1969, at a summit in Rabat, Morocco, following an arson attack on Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem.
With 57 member states, it is the world's second-largest intergovernmental political organization after the United Nations and serves as a major forum for cooperation among Muslim-majority countries.
The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), Russia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Thailand and the Central African Republic hold observer status.
Mauritania's Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed was elected the organization's new secretary-general at the 23rd Extraordinary Session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers in August 2026.
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