Attacks targeting civilians are unacceptable: Turkish FM Fidan
"The peace process needs to start as soon as possible, within agreed parameters and aiming for a two-state solution," diplomatic sources say citing Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.
"It is a double standard that in some European countries demonstrations in support of Palestine are banned, while attacks targeting our holy book, the Holy Quran, are allowed on the grounds of freedom of expression," said Fidan. / Photo: AA Archive
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan stressed the need for "immediate cessation of attacks targeting civilians and a ceasefire" regarding the Israel-Palestine conflict, Turkish diplomatic sources have said.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan received on Monday the Head of the EU Delegation Nikolaus Meyer-Landrut and the Ambassadors of EU member states to Ankara.
"Attacks targeting civilians are unacceptable, they must stop immediately and a ceasefire must be declared. Humanitarian aid needs to be delivered to Gaza without interruption," the sources said on developments in Gaza, citing the foreign minister.
"We must prevent the conflict from reaching a regional level. The peace process needs to start as soon as possible, within agreed parameters and aiming for a two-state solution. In this context, we believe that the guarantor mechanism can be utilised".
"It is a double standard that in some European countries demonstrations in support of Palestine are banned, while attacks targeting our holy book, the Holy Quran, are allowed on the grounds of freedom of expression," the sources added citing Fidan.
Solving the regional problems
Fidan said Türkiye plays an extremely important role in solving the regional problems.
"We need stronger cooperation in the fight against terrorism".
Current issues in the Balkans, the Caucasus, Central Asia and the war in Ukraine were also discussed during the meeting.
"We hope that the EU will approach Türkiye with a visionary perspective and put aside petty political calculations," Fidan added.
'Visa liberalisation Türkiye's priority'
The EU should act "in accordance with the principle of loyalty". Updating the Customs Union and visa liberalisation are Türkiye's priorities, the foreign minister stressed.
"In order to revitalise relations, the EU needs to act in line with the principle of fidelity in Türkiye's accession process."
Dialogue and cooperation mechanisms between Türkiye and the EU need to be operationalised, Fidan said.
"The EU needs to make a sincere effort to implement visa liberalisation. Also, we expect the obstacles delaying visa issuance for our citizens to be removed immediately and the visas issued to be multiple-entry and long-term."
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