Video: Skip strikes on Iran, tackle nukes first to avoid war, Turkey urges US
Abdullateef Fowewe
Turkish Foreign Minister, Hakan Fidan has issued a warning against United States military action toward Iran, pushing for step-by-step diplomacy to defuse nuclear tensions and prevent a wider Middle East conflict.
In a recent video statement, Fidan cautioned, “It’s wrong to attack on Iran, it’s wrong to start the war again. Iran is ready to negotiate on the nuclear file again.”
He advised Washington to prioritise issues sequentially, saying, “My advice to the American friends—close the files one by one with Iranians. Start with nuclear, close it, and not get it as a package.”
Fidan argued that bundling the nuclear program with other disputes—like Iran’s proxy militias or sanctions—could backfire.
“If you put them as a package, it will be very difficult for our Iranian friends to digest and to go through this,” he said.
“It might seem humiliating for them and difficult to explain to the leadership. If we can make things better tolerated, it would help.”
The remarks come amid rising Israel-Iran frictions, following Fidan’s January 23 alert that Israel is eyeing a pretext to strike Iran.
Turkey positions itself as a key diplomatic mediator in the volatile region.
