Fidan Chairs R4+E3 Meeting in Istanbul With Italy's Participation

Foreign ministers of R4+E3 convened in Istanbul with Italy's participation, chaired by Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, according to sources from the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The agenda includes files on the Palestinian crisis, conditions in the Hormuz and Bab al-Mandab straits, developments related to Yemen, efforts to resolve the Russia-Ukraine war, as well as prospects for cooperation and coordination between R4 and E3 states.

No joint statements or announced outcomes from the meeting have been issued thus far.

Fidan is expected to emphasize in his remarks that regional security requires states in the region to shoulder their responsibility first, and that Turkey prioritizes strengthening cooperation mechanisms based on regional ownership. He is also expected to warn that fueling conflicts with each other, the spread of confrontations to new areas, and the transformation of regional tensions into comprehensive destabilization should be avoided.

Ministry sources indicate that Fidan will reaffirm that Israel's ongoing occupation of Palestine, the rigid stance obstructing international peace efforts, and aggression extending across the entire region all represent the root sources of Middle Eastern tensions. He will call on all states to refrain from any measures that would undermine the historical and legal status of Jerusalem or harm two-state solution efforts, calling on the international community to take a firm stance and apply mounting pressure on Israel in confronting the expansion of illegal settlements and the encouragement of illegal settler terrorism.

On the U.S.-Iran file, Fidan is expected to stress that the dispute between the United States and Iran can only be resolved through diplomacy and dialogue, and that military methods do not provide a lasting solution but rather ignite regional fragilities and bring the risk of wider-scale conflict. He will emphasize that establishing permanent freedom of navigation in the Hormuz and Bab al-Mandab straits is of paramount importance for regional and global stability.

Fidan is also expected to affirm Turkey's support for the security of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the face of Houthi attacks targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure on Saudi territory, pointing to the importance of solidarity and the concept of shared security embodied by the Mecca Defense Alliance.

On Syria, Fidan is expected to note the valuable contributions that R4 and E3 states are making to promote stability and prosperity there, noting Israel's continued implementation of acts aimed at destabilizing Syria. On Ukraine, he will stress that Turkey, as a Black Sea littoral state, continues to convey its warnings and proposals to the parties to the conflict with the aim of preventing the war from spreading to the Black Sea and ending civilian casualties there, expressing his country's readiness to provide all possible support to end this war through dialogue and diplomacy.

The R4 mechanism brings together Turkey, Egypt, Pakistan, and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on the basis of regional ownership with the aim of supporting lasting stability and addressing regional files.