US efforts for solution to Gaza humanitarian crisis stemming from global pressure: Turkish Foreign Ministry

By Anadolu staff

ANKARA (AA) – US’ current efforts for a solution to the ongoing humanitarian disaster in the Gaza Strip are a result of mounting international pressure, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.

"We actually see America's search for a solution to the humanitarian disaster in Gaza as a result of the pressure put on the US by world public opinion," spokesman Oncu Keceli told the reporters in the capital Ankara.

Referring to the last week's visit of Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan to the US, Keceli said the Gaza issue dominated the talks.

"We strongly conveyed to the Americans that an immediate and complete cease-fire should be established in Gaza and that a process towards a permanent two-state solution should be initiated immediately after this," Keceli said.

Türkiye and the US agree that Gaza civilians should not be harmed further and that humanitarian aid will continue to be provided "continuously and uninterruptedly" to Gaza, he added.

The spokesman stressed that the aid to be delivered to Gaza by road is important and that the UN and non-governmental organizations specialized in this field also made the same observation.

"This was the basis of the messages we conveyed to the US.

"We said: 'Let's achieve a cease-fire as soon as possible, and in the meantime, use all your influence on Israel to ensure that humanitarian aid enters Gaza in the most effective, rapid and sustainable way possible'," Keceli said.

Türkiye is in constant contact with the Egyptian authorities, he said, adding that for reasons caused by Israel, tons of humanitarian aid materials are waiting on the Egyptian side of the border.

About a question on US intentions to build a pier off the Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid, Keceli said: "First, this is a good development if it means America acknowledges the humanitarian disaster in Gaza."

On the other hand, he said: "We do not find it appropriate to carry out some less effective attempts when it is possible to deliver aid much more easily, much cheaper and more effectively by road."

About the aid ship delivery from Southern Cyprus to Gaza, Keceli said: "The interlocutor of the Greek Cypriot Administration of Southern Cyprus is the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). Therefore, they will make the necessary comments on this issue."

"The only thing I can say from our perspective is that we do not allow the TRNC's rights in the Eastern Mediterranean to be damaged or violated in any way," he added.

- Türkiye's aid to Gaza

Keceli stressed that the humanitarian disaster in Gaza is deteriorating, and Ankara will continue to support people in Gaza during Ramadan.

Stressing that the ship carrying approximately 3,000 tons of humanitarian aid reached Egypt's Al-Arish port on March 10, Keceli said: "The aid we have provided to Gaza since the beginning of the crisis has exceeded 40,000 tons."

Ankara delivered 26,000 tons of flour to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) in Türkiye's southern city of Mersin, he said, affirming that the flour was taken to Israel's Ashdod port by UNRWA and some of it was dispatched to Gaza by land.

Keceli stressed that the Israeli authorities prevented the delivery of the remaining flour to Gaza, and the remainder of the 26,000 tons of flour that Türkiye provided to UNRWA has started to be gradually shipped to Gaza through the World Food Program (WFP).

He reminded the reporters that humanitarian airdrops into Gaza continue, and said: "We delivered approximately 9,000 tons of medical and baby supplies to provide support. Jordanian authorities deliver it to Gaza by air."

About the evacuations of Turkish citizens from Gaza, Keceli said: "As of this morning, we have evacuated 1,489 of our citizens, TRNC citizens and their relatives from Gaza. We still have a group of citizens that we are trying to evacuate."

- Joint mechanism with US in fight against terrorism

During the talks in Washington last week, Keceli said both countries relaunched the Türkiye-US Counterterrorism Consultations during the Strategic Mechanism to expand cooperation against terrorism, and agreed to hold regular face-to-face meetings.

"There will be a series of meetings with the participation of different institutions," Keceli said, adding there is a consultation mechanism under the coordination of ministries of foreign affairs, including security units.

Türkiye did not take permission from anyone to combat the PKK terrorist organization in Iraq, he stressed.

"If we are going to carry out an operation against a foreign terrorist organization that threatens our security, the only entity from which we will receive permission is the UN, Article 51 of the UN Charter."

Noting that the US soldiers are present in Iraq, Keceli said: "Of course, we are also meeting with them in connection with our fight against the PKK. However, this does not mean getting approval or permission."

Recalling that Fidan spelled out Türkiye’s stance on the Sulaymaniyah issue, he said: "We have some expectations from Sulaymaniyah," referring to Türkiye's concerns regarding PKK terrorist group's activities in disputed territories in northern Iraq, which is under control of Iraq's Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) party.

"The steps that would enable us to bring our relationship in Sulaymaniyah to the point it was a few years ago have not yet been taken by Sulaymaniyah," Keceli said.

Fidan, along with National Defense Minister Yasar Guler and head of National Intelligence Organization Ibrahim Kalin, on Thursday will visit Iraq where they will attend the next meeting of the security-oriented consultations with Iraq to be hosted by Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein.

Various topics on the bilateral agenda, particularly cooperation in the fields of combatting terrorism, security, as well as military cooperation, will be discussed thoroughly during the meeting in Baghdad.

Keceli added that the preparations for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's planned visit to Iraq will also be discussed during the talks, and that the presidency will later announce the date of the official visit.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the US, and the European Union – has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants. The YPG is the PKK’s Syrian offshoot.

PKK terrorists often hide out in northern Iraq to plot cross-border attacks in Türkiye.

- Relations with Syria

Keceli underlined that no meeting took place between Türkiye and the Syrian regime within the framework of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' responsibility regarding relations with the war-tron country.

"Our policy on normalization has been clear from the beginning. We revealed these transparently and honestly. We don't have any preconditions," he said.

There is a point where Türkiye wants the Syrian regime to reach at the end of this process, regarding Syria's political process, the return of Syrians, and the future of Syria.

"On the other hand, there are some preconditions that the Syrian regime has imposed on us," he added.

President Erdogan previously said that normalization with Syria is possible if there was progress on some issues, including the fight against terrorism, on the safe and voluntary return of refugees, and on the country’s political process.

Syria has been mired in a vicious civil war since 2011, when the Bashar al-Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests.

Hundreds of thousands of people have been killed and more than 10 million others displaced, according to UN estimates.

Türkiye is the largest host country for Syrian refugees and provides international protection to nearly 4 million people who fled the neighboring country, according to official figures.

- Ukraine-Russia war

Regarding some reports that the Turkish Armed Forces were invited to Europe following the tensions between Russia and some European countries, including France and Germany, Keceli said that he was not aware of such an invitation.

Underlining that Türkiye follows the same policy in the ongoing Ukraine-Russia war, Keceli said that when the conditions are met for both sides, the parties should come together to talk about the conditions of peace.

Pointing out that the war has reached the tipping point, many people have died and it has economic repercussions on the region, Keceli said: "We think there should be a solution to this issue. We believe that it will be found eventually.

"However, no effort should be made to impose a solution. The parties will only be able to talk when they are ready," he added.

Erdogan last week met with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Istanbul to discuss the recent developments.

"Since the beginning, we have made, and continue to make every contribution in our power for the termination of the war on the basis of negotiations. We are ready to host a peace summit in which Russia will also participate," Erdogan said.

Türkiye, internationally praised for its unique mediator role between Ukraine and Russia, has time and again called on Kyiv and Moscow to end the fighting through negotiations.

Erdogan has repeatedly stressed his wish to bring Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelenskyy together in Türkiye for formal discussions to end the conflict.

- F-35 fighter jets

Answering the question about the link between Türkiye's request to be removed from Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) and the new mechanism to be established under the name of US-Türkiye Defense Trade Dialogue, Keceli said the two are different processes on the same subject.

He pointed out that they departed from the US with "positive impressions" and received positive messages in the Senate about the restrictions imposed on Türkiye during Fidan’s US visit.

Stating that negotiations with regard to the F-35s, which were not delivered to Türkiye despite payment and the expenses during Türkiye's F-35 program, carry on, Keceli said: "If there are some ongoing work on returning to the F-35 project, this does fall under the responsibility of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs."

- Greek premier to visit Türkiye in May

Keceli said that the Türkiye-Greece Political Dialogue Meeting held on March 11 took place in a "positive atmosphere."

The spokesman said issues such as scheduling high-level contacts and visits, Aegean issues, the situation of minorities, consular relations, cooperation in the fight against irregular migration and terrorism, protection of mutual cultural heritage and cooperation on the international candidacies of the two countries were discussed.

Stating that views were also exchanged on regional and international issues, Keceli said: "In line with the 'Athens Declaration on Friendly Relations and Good Neighborhood' signed by the leaders of the two countries during the 5th High Level Cooperation Council held in Athens last December, we made it clear to the Greek side that any escalatory discourse or action must be avoided.”

Keceli said that issues such as the latest situation and preparations in the visa facilitation (visa on arrival) application for Turkish citizens' touristic visits to 10 Greek islands, announced by Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis during Erdogan's visit to Athens in December 2023, were also discussed.

He reminded that at the Council meeting, an agreement was reached in principle during Mitsotakis' upcoming visit to Ankara, and said that a date for the meeting is about to be set.

"Efforts to determine a date for the visit to take place in May are continuing," he added.

The spokesperson also affirmed that within this framework, it was agreed to hold the Joint Action Plan meeting, focused on a positive agenda for cooperation between the two countries in a multitude of domains, including the economy, between Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Burak Akcapar and his Greek counterpart Kostas Fragoyannis on April 15 in Ankara.

The official also said that the Confidence Building Measures meeting is planned to be held in Athens on April 22, indicating that various agreements are expected to be signed during Mitsotakis' visit to Türkiye.

Keceli added that preparations for the texts of the agreements are continuing, and that there has been an increasing momentum in contacts and visits with Greece since the beginning of 2023.

* Writing by Serdar Dincel and Emre Basaran in Istanbul.