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NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte thanked Türkiye for its role in the Gaza ceasefire agreement and said Ankara has "a major role" in helping Iraq develop its own security and defense forces.
Rutte responded to a question from the Turkish Grand National Assembly, NATO Parliamentary Assembly (PA) Turkish Delegation Head, and Türkiye's ruling Justice and Development (AK Party) Antalya Deputy Mevlut Cavusoglu about how Israel's attacks in the region and Gaza affect NATO's overall security environment at the NATO PA meeting in Slovenia.
At the start of his remarks, Rutte thanked Türkiye through Cavusoglu for its contribution to the Gaza ceasefire. "I also thank the U.S., Egypt and Qatar for the ceasefire that has come into effect," Rutte said.
Rutte said he knows President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his team worked very intensively with the U.S., Egypt and Qatar on Gaza.
"So the fact that this development (ceasefire) is happening now is a very big step, and I hope this also inspires us in Europe and together with the U.S. to do everything to end this terrible war of aggression against Ukraine," Rutte said.
Rutte said they follow events in the Middle East very closely. "If I have to specifically answer your question, you know I have to be a little cautious about this because within NATO there are different views on the situation in the Middle East, especially on Israel and Gaza," Rutte said.
Rutte noted that NATO works in the Euro-Atlantic region and the Israel issue "falls a bit outside the territory of the alliance."
"This is an issue related to our mission in Iraq. By the way, Türkiye also plays a major role here. It is still helping the Iraqis develop their own security and defense forces," Rutte said.
Rutte said European Union defense projects should be "transparent and open" to allies that are not EU members. He noted that Türkiye has 3,000 companies that are part of the defense industry infrastructure.
"Right now, an ammunition factory in Texas could not produce what it needs without the supply chain from Türkiye. So transatlantically, everything is interconnected," Rutte concluded.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper thanked Türkiye, the U.S., Qatar and Egypt for mediating the Gaza ceasefire.
Starmer said in a post on the social media platform X that he felt deep relief following the release of Israeli hostages.
"I reiterate my thanks for the tireless diplomatic efforts of the U.S., Egypt, Qatar and Türkiye. It is crucial that we now work together to implement (President Donald) Trump's peace plan for Gaza, and that will be my focus in Egypt today," Starmer said.
British Foreign Secretary Cooper said she was pleased with the release of hostages. "We thank President Trump, Qatar, Türkiye and Egypt for their tireless mediation efforts," Cooper said.
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