Türkiye, France to discuss bilateral, regional issues in key visit
ANKARA
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and his French counterpart, Jean-Noel Barrot, will hold comprehensive discussions on all aspects of bilateral relations and regional developments, including Syria and Gaza, during the latter’s visit to Ankara on Jan. 27, according to diplomatic sources.
According to the sources, Barrot will pay a one-day visit to meet Fidan. The French top diplomat’s last visit to Türkiye was in May 2025 on the occasion of the informal gatherings of the NATO foreign ministers in Antalya.
The latest bilateral exchange took place during Fidan’s visit to Paris in April in 2025, although President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and French President Emmanuel Macron held tete-a-tete talks in different international platforms in the past year.
The sources said Fidan will emphasize Ankara’s satisfaction over increased dialogue between the two countries on regional and global matters and convey the message that the Turkish government has the will at the highest level to further develop this momentum and reflect it on all domains of the bilateral ties through a strategic perspective.
On economic and trade ties that cover a good portion of the bilateral portfolio, Fidan will stress Türkiye’s call for further improving these bonds through joint ventures in third countries.
He will also stress that Türkiye and France will hold the eighth Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) meeting in Istanbul on Feb. 17 in a bid to further contribute to the economic and trade ties.
On the bilateral agenda, Fidan will also raise the situation of around 800,000 Turks in France as playing an important in bridging the two nations. The fight against terrorism and developing cooperation in the field of the defense industry will also be on the two ministers' agenda.
Türkiye’s EU process
Fidan and Barrot will also review the Turkish accession process to the EU. Fidan will reiterate Ankara’s expectations to run Türkiye-EU ties with a strategic understanding without making it an internal consumption matter in some EU countries.
He will also stress the importance of Turkish admission to the EU’s industry strategy for strengthening EU’s competitiveness and reinforcing its strategic autonomy.
The two ministers will exchange views on a wide range of international issues, including the efforts to end the Russian occupation of Ukraine, the Gaza peace deal and Syria.
On the Russia-Ukraine war, Fidan will repeat Türkiye’s determination in pledging any sort of contribution for ending the war through diplomatic means. On Gaza, he will underline the importance of the continued implementation of the peace deal and of cooperation of the international community to this end.
YPG-Damascus deal
Preventing Israeli violations of the ceasefire and securing an uninterrupted flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza will be among the issues Fidan will raise.
On Syria, Fidan and Barrot will review the latest developments in the field after Damascus controlled a good part of its lands in the eastern Euphrates from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), or YPG.
Fidan will underline the importance of the protection of the territorial integrity and political unity of Syria for the national security of Türkiye. He will inform the French minister that Türkiye will closely follow the implementation of the Jan. 18 deal between Damascus and SDF on the ceasefire and the latter's full integration into the national army.