Fidan urges UN to halt Israeli aggression
NEW YORK
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan strongly warned the U.N. on Friday concerning Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's military actions in Palestine and Lebanon.
Speaking at a UN Security Council meeting focused on the Middle East, Fidan highlighted the intensity of Israeli aggression.
"With Israeli aggression unbounded and Lebanon on target, we are now in uncharted waters,” he said.
"Intense bombing continues unabated, without distinction of civilians and military targets."
Fidan's comments followed a devastating Israeli airstrike on Beirut's southern suburbs, which the Israeli army claimed targeted the main headquarters of Hezbollah.
He urged the Security Council to fulfill its critical responsibilities, stating, "I urge all of you to stop this war and Israeli aggression."
Addressing the broader implications, Fidan warned, "Today, we are confronted with a blade, a sharp turning point... our so-valued rules-based order is in shambles. With each passing day, this erosion becomes irreversible. Wisdom dictates that we must prevail in stopping this barbaric war in Gaza before it spreads to the West Bank, Lebanon, and beyond.
He criticized international actors for their lack of decisive action despite having the means to influence the "horrific cause" and called for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza.
Fidan accused Netanyahu of obstructing such agreements, insisting that Netanyahu will persist in his "genocidal acts" unless the international community, particularly the Security Council, exerts "real pressure" on Israel to cease hostilities.
Fidan asserted that only a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine could ensure peace and the security of Israel. He stressed that "the political or individual interests of Netanyahu and his fundamentalist partners should not endanger regional stability and international order."
Türkiye maintains strong support for a two-state resolution to the Israel-Palestine conflict, envisioning an independent Palestinian state based on 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. "Let us all work together to achieve just and lasting peace." This is our call to the Security Council," Fidan concluded.
Bilateral Talks
On the sidelines of the UN General Assembly's 79th session, Fidan continued engaging in active diplomacy. He conducted meetings with several foreign counterparts to discuss bilateral, regional, and global issues.
Fidan held a private discussion with Fuad Hussein, Iraq’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, at the Turkish House. Furthermore, Fidan had private discussions with Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard and Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlic Radman, but no specific details emerged from these meetings.
Türkiye, Russia, and Iran hold Syria talks
In another development, foreign ministers from Türkiye, Russia, and Iran, the three guarantor states of the Astana platform established to de-escalate tensions in Syria and pave the way for a political process, met in New York on Friday.
Fidan, Sergey Lavrov, and Abbas Araghchi attended the Foreign Ministerial Meeting of the Astana Platform on the margins of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly.
The ministers discussed the security, political, and humanitarian situation in Syria and called for restraint to prevent Israel's attacks on Lebanon from causing an additional spiral of violence in Syria, Turkish diplomatic sources said.
The meeting emphasized the importance of maintaining peace on the ground, including in northwestern Idlib province, as well as the need to prevent attempts by the separatist terrorist organizations to take advantage of the current situation, the sources added.
Reiterating Türkiye's support for the revival of the political process in Syria, Fidan underlined the importance of the Astana Process in achieving peace and stability in Syria.
During the meeting, the Turkish foreign minister drew attention to the threat of terrorism and the fact that ISIL is increasing its attacks in Syria.
Fidan emphasized that the UN should play a "leading role" in resolving the conflict in Syria, the sources added.
Syria has been locked in a vicious civil war since early 2011, when the Bashar al-Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests with unexpected ferocity.
Fidan attends CELAC
Fidan also attended the 5th Türkiye-Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) Quartet Foreign Ministers Meeting in New York.
The discussions focused on elements from the Joint Declaration issued following the 4th meeting in Istanbul on April 21, 2017, as well as current global challenges, according to Turkish diplomatic sources.
CELAC was founded in December 2011 to enhance regional integration and includes all Latin American and Caribbean nations.
The organization holds meetings in a CELAC Quartet format with countries that have established bilateral cooperation mechanisms.
Türkiye attaches significant importance to its cooperation with regional organizations as part of its outreach policy toward Latin America and the Caribbean.