Türkiye offers facilitator role in Iran-US tension
ANKARA
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (R) and Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi (L) hold a joint press conference following their meeting in Istanbul on Jan. 30, 2026.
Türkiye has formally proposed to play a facilitating role in the de-escalation of ongoing tensions between Iran and the United States during high-level talks between Turkish and Iranian officials in Istanbul, reiterating diplomacy and dialogue is the best way to resolve standing disputes.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke by phone with his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian, as Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan hosted Iran's top diplomat Abbas Araghchi in Istanbul on Jan. 30 as part of Ankara’s recent diplomatic engagement in the potential powder keg situation.
Erdoğan and Pezeshkian discussed bilateral relations between Türkiye and Iran, as well as the escalating military tension in the region, the Communications Directorate said in a statement.
It also said Erdoğan emphasized that Türkiye stands ready to assume a facilitating role between Iran and the United States in order to de-escalate tension and resolve issues.
For his part, Pezeshkian said that the success of diplomacy with the United States hinged on ending threating conduct after Washington's heavy military deployments in the Gulf.
“The success of any diplomatic initiative depends on the goodwill of the parties involved and the abandonment of belligerent and threatening actions in the region," Pezeshkian said in a statement by the presidency.
Later in the day, Erdoğan will receive Araghchi to discuss the regional developments.
Fidan meets Iranian counterpart
The recent developments in the region have been discussed in detail in a lengthy meeting between the two foreign ministers. Fidan and Araghchi informed the media about their conversation through a joint press conference.
Fidan reiterated that Türkiye is against using military means for resolving regional problems and engaging with both sides to pave the way for the prevail of diplomacy. Stressing that he had a lengthy phone conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff on Jan. 29, Fidan said Ankara is exploring ways to develop new perspective to resume talks between Iran and the U.S.
Having said that, the Turkish top diplomat accused Israel of trying to convince the U.S. of a military strike on Iran, calling on Washington to uphold common sense and rational to avoid the military option.
Iran ready to negotiate but has preconditions
He also urged Israel to give up its expansionist policies in the region and start to cooperate with all the countries by respecting their borders and sovereignty.
The Iranian minister, for his part, underlined Tehran’s readiness for the resumption of negotiations with the U.S., although the latter has never been loyal to their words in the past. “We are still ready for negotiations on the condition that they will be based on fairness and conscientiousness,” he said.
Iran has never pursued policies to develop nuclear weapons, and its sole objective is the peaceful use of nuclear energy, Araghchi stressed.
On a question, the minister said there is no planned meeting with the Americans and there has to be a pre-agreement on the modalities, location and content of potential talks. He said all these issues were discussed in the meeting with Fidan while appreciating Türkiye’s active role in the de-escalation.
However, Aragchi did also warn the U.S. about the consequences of staging a war against Iran, saying “We are as ready for war as we are to negotiate. Indeed, we are much readier for war compared to the June attacks [by Israel and the U.S.]."