Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Friday that NATO should take the same anti-occupation stance in Palestine as it did during the invasion of Ukraine.
Speaking speaking at an informal meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Prague, Fidan said NATO should take a principled stance against Israel’s occupation of Palestine.
He noted that Turkey was almost the only country that loudly repeated its views at NATO meetings and drew attention to the ongoing crisis in Gaza due to Israeli atrocities.
Turkey’s top diplomat noted that NATO, as a security alliance, needs to address global security challenges before they arise, not when they happen.
“We raised the idea that although the Israeli-Palestinian issue is considered a regional issue, it can, and in some aspects has, evolved into a global security issue,” Fidan said, adding that if Israel’s ongoing genocide is not stopped, a ceasefire is not achieved and a two-state solution is not agreed upon, the issue will expand and evolve further, involving other actors and becoming a global issue.
Fidan also said Turkey does not want NATO to “join” the war in Ukraine.
“We support continued aid to Ukraine and its deterrence (against Russia), but we do not want NATO to join this war,” Fidan said.
“We believe that there needs to be a balance between these two things across member states and across NATO,” he added, warning that conflict could escalate regionally and spark a more serious crisis.
Turkey has maintained good diplomatic relations with both Russia and Ukraine since Moscow’s invasion of its pro-Western neighbor in February 2022.
Washington on Thursday authorized Ukraine to use US weapons to defend the Kharkiv region on its border with Russia, dispelling earlier concerns that authorizing such an attack could draw NATO into a direct conflict with Russia.
Germany said on Friday it had given Ukraine permission to fire German-delivered weapons at targets in Russia.
Daily Saba Newsletter
Stay up to date on what’s happening in Turkey, the region, and the world.
sign up
You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
