Erdoğan chairs meeting on regional developments

ISTANBUL-Anadolu Agency

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Jan. 3 chaired a meeting to discuss recent developments in the region.

Following the Istanbul meeting, held in the Dolmabahçe Palace, Communications Director Fahrettin Altun said the meeting discussed recent developments in Iraq, Libya and Syria, as well as the recent U.S.-Iran row.

“Our president emphasized that Turkey should continue to maintain its constructive attitude in the face regional developments, to take effective steps to ensure peace and stability and to use all the potential of diplomacy,” Altun said in a written statement.

The high-level meeting was held in attendance of Vice President Fuat Oktay, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, as well as Hakan Fidan, the head of National Intelligence Organization (MIT), İbrahim Kalın, the spokesman for the presidency, and Altun.

The meeting came after the Turkish parliament ratified a motion on Jan. 2 authorizing the government to send troops to Libya, and following the U.S. confirmation of U.S. killing a top Iranian commander.

The U.S. airstrike that killed Qasem Soleimani, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps' Quds Force, in Baghdad, Iraq came amid heightened tensions after thousands of Iran-backed protesters stormed the U.S. Embassy compound in Baghdad.

Turkey on Jan. 3 voiced concern over the U.S.-Iran tension following the killing of Soleimani, warning the move will escalate “insecurity and instability” in the region.