Turkey says ready for Iranian president’s imminent visit to Ankara

President Raeisi’s visit to Ankara to attend the 8th meeting of their Supreme Council of Economic Cooperation is a response to his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s trip to Tehran in July 2022.    

In his phone talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian on Thursday, Fidan touched on the recent developments, saying it is necessary to maintain and strengthen brotherly relations between the countries of the region.

Earlier in the day, Fidan advised against further escalation and urged restoration of calm after Iran and Pakistan launched airstrikes against “terrorists” in each other’s territory.

Turkey will continue to do whatever is necessary to reduce the tension, he said after holding talks with Amir-Abdollahian and Pakistani Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani. 

“Both sides expressed that they do not desire the escalation of tension and that they have it under control,” Fidan said in a news conference in the Jordanian capital.

“The security of the countries of the region is interconnected and the joint and decisive fight against terrorist groups is the common responsibility of all the countries of the region,” Amir-Abdollahian said, according to a statement by the Iranian Foreign Ministry.

He also emphasized the unchanging approach of the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to expand relations with neighboring countries with the aim of securing the interests of the people of the region, it added.

Amir-Abdollahian also reiterated the determination of the Iranian government to advance relations with Turkey.

He hoped that President Raeisi’s visit to Ankara in the near future would play an effective role in increasing relations, especially in the economic and commercial area, and improving regional security.

The Iranian president cancelled his planned visit to Turkey following terrorist bombings in Kerman on January 3.

Erdogan had first announced in November that “Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi is coming to us on the 28th of the month” to focus on forging a joint response to the Israeli invasion of Gaza, but the visit did not take place due to conflicting schedules of their foreign ministers.

Both Turkey and Iran oppose the illegal US presence in Syria and have strongly condemned the ongoing Israeli genocide against the Palestinians.