Turkey's Fidan holds call with China FM as Iran-Israel ceasefire reached
The two top diplomats also discussed bilateral ties as well as the situation in Gaza.
ANKARA — Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan held a phone call with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, on Tuesday to discuss bilateral relations and the ongoing Iran-Israel conflict, a Turkish Foreign Ministry source said, as both countries monitor the fragile ceasefire.
They “discussed efforts to de-escalate the ongoing conflict and tensions between Israel and Iran,” the source told reporters on condition of anonymity.
Wang, in turn, told Fidan that the ceasefire “reached by the two sides offers some hope,” according to a Chinese readout.
The truce, announced late Monday by President Donald Trump, remains fragile, with Iran and Israel accusing each other of breaching the agreement within hours of its announcement.
Turkey and China, both long-standing economic partners of Iran, have condemned Israel’s strikes and urged restraint.
Their public positions on the US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites over the weekend however slightly differed.
Wang slammed the US strikes as a “serious violation of international law,” according to Beijing’s readout.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and other Turkish officials, meanwhile, stopped short of directly criticizing Washington following the strikes, instead voicing concerns over a possible broader conflict.
While Iran supplies a significant share of Turkey’s natural gas, it is also one of largest oil sellers to China.
“China can now continue to purchase oil from Iran,” Trump posted on Truth Socal Tuesday, as he announced that the ceasefire between the warring parties remained intact despite reported violations.
In the immediate aftermath of Israeli strikes earlier this month, Tehran had threatened to seal the Strait of Hormuz, a move that could have disrupted both Turkish gas and Chinese oil imports.
Ankara and Beijing are also aligned in their criticism of the ongoing Israeli war against Hamas in Gaza. During the call, the two ministers stressed that the Palestinian issue must be resolved within the framework of a two-state solution, the Turkish source said.
Fidan and the Chinese minister also discussed bilateral ties, the Turkish source said.
“Both sides expressed a mutual commitment to further strengthening ties in all areas, including trade and investment,” the source said.
China is the third-largest trade partner of Turkey, with the two countries' trade volume standing at nearly $45 billion last year.
Fidan and Wang last met in February on the sidelines of a G20 summit in Johannesburg. Following Wang’s visit to Ankara in July 2023, Fidan visited China in June last year.
