Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian that upcoming talks between Iran and the United States should be used to achieve lasting peace, his office said Thursday.
In a phone call, Erdoğan said the negotiations expected in the coming days should be fully utilized to promote long-term stability in the region.
Both Washington and Tehran have confirmed their participation in talks brokered by Pakistan, although the schedule has yet to be finalized. The United States and Iran have agreed to a two-week ceasefire, with negotiations aimed at reaching a broader deal expected to begin in Islamabad.
The truce, announced Tuesday by US President Donald Trump, includes the conditional reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route through which about one-fifth of the world’s oil supply passes.
Echoing Erdoğan’s message, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said it was crucial for both sides to adopt a “conciliatory, flexible, patient and constructive” approach in the upcoming talks.
“It is of great importance that the parties adopt a conciliatory, flexible, patient and constructive attitude,” Fidan said at a joint news conference with his Syrian counterpart in Ankara.
Fidan also called for the ceasefire to extend beyond Iran, saying it should include Lebanon, which has been facing intensified Israeli strikes.
“We hope that the ceasefire will be fully implemented on the ground, including in Lebanon, and that the process will lead to lasting peace,” he said.
Israel and the United States are not covered by the US-Iran ceasefire, and violence has continued elsewhere in the region.
Lebanon’s health ministry said more than 300 people were killed and 1,150 wounded in Israeli strikes on Wednesday.
Turkey strongly condemned the attacks in a foreign ministry statement issued later that day.
© Agence France-Presse