Turkish Foreign Minister Fidan ramps up diplomatic contacts

By Sumeyye Dilara Dincer

ANKARA (AA) – Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has recently overseen some intensive diplomatic traffic for Türkiye, hosting dignitaries and attending various events.

He received EU Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi in Ankara on May 23, before attending a NATO foreign ministers meeting on Ukraine in the Czech capital Prague on May 31.

Fidan then visited China on June 3-5, meeting Chinese Vice President Han Zheng and Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

He discussed bilateral relations and international issues during his meetings in Beijing.

He also visited the capital of China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, Urumqi, and Kashgar, where he conveyed Türkiye's sincere views on Uyghur Turks to Chinese authorities in Beijing and Xinjiang.

On Saturday, he attended an Extraordinary Meeting of the D-8 Council of Foreign Ministers in Istanbul. The meeting, hosted by Türkiye at Istanbul’s iconic Dolmabahce Palace, discussed the ongoing situation in Gaza.

Fidan then flew to the Qatari capital Doha on Sunday to attend the 6th Türkiye-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) High-Level Strategic Dialogue meeting of foreign ministers.

- Diplomatic traffic to continue

The Turkish diplomat will travel to Russia on Monday for a two-day visit. He will attend a foreign ministers meeting of the BRICS and BRICS+ blocs.

He will then attend the South East European Cooperation Process (SEECP) Summit in Skopje, before accompanying President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to the Group of Seven (G7) Summit in Italy between June 13 and 15.

Fidan will also visit Switzerland for the Ukraine peace summit, which will be held at the Burgenstock Resort on June 15-16.

*Writing by Muhammed Enes Calli