Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will attend the Three Seas Initiative Summit in Dubrovnik on Tuesday as Ankara seeks a larger role in a European platform focused on transport, energy and digital infrastructure at a time when the Iran war, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and instability in the Middle East have raised concerns over trade routes and energy security.
Fidan will represent President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at the summit in Croatia, according to Turkish diplomatic sources cited by state-run Anadolu news agency. Fidan’s attendance will mark Turkey’s first Three Seas summit as a strategic partner after Ankara was granted that status at the 2025 summit in Warsaw, where it was represented by Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu.
The Three Seas Initiative was launched in 2015 by Poland and Croatia to improve infrastructure links among European Union countries in Central and Eastern Europe. Its work focuses on transport, energy and digital projects across the region between the Baltic, Adriatic and Black seas.
Croatia, which holds the initiative’s presidency, will host the 11th summit on April 28 and a business forum on April 28 and 29 in Dubrovnik. Croatian officials said the agenda includes regional connectivity, energy security, strategic infrastructure, EU competitiveness and private investment.
Turkey is not a member of the initiative because full participation is limited to EU member states. Ankara joined as a strategic partner in 2025, giving it a formal role in a platform that also works with partners outside the bloc.
The summit comes after US and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February triggered a regional conflict and prompted Iran to limit passage through the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global oil and gas shipments. A Pakistan-brokered ceasefire on April 8 eased the immediate fighting, but the crisis has kept energy security and maritime routes high on the regional agenda.
Fidan is expected to underline Turkey’s position in trade and energy routes linking Europe with the Black Sea, the Caucasus, Central Asia and the Middle East. Ankara has promoted the Middle Corridor, a route connecting China and Europe through Central Asia, the Caspian Sea, the South Caucasus and Turkey, as well as the Development Road Project, a planned rail and road link from Iraq’s Gulf coast to Turkey and Europe.
The meeting offers a platform for Ankara to present Turkey as a transport and energy hub as Europe seeks safer supply chains and alternatives to routes exposed to the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.