FM Fidan steps up Turkish diplomacy in global blitz
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan attends the 6th Türkiye-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) High-Level Strategic Dialogue meeting of foreign ministers, Doha, Qatar, June 9, 2024. (AA Photo)


Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has ramped up Türkiye’s diplomatic traffic in recent months as he hosted dignitaries and attended various events around the globe on world issues, regional troubles and bilateral ties.

Fidan received European Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi and Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil in Ankara on May 23, before visiting Brussels, the capital of Belgium, to attend meetings on Palestine on May 26.

On May 29, Fidan met with members of the Gaza Contact Group formed by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Arab League in the Spanish capital Madrid.

He also attended a NATO foreign ministers meeting on Ukraine in the Czech capital of 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 Dolmabahçe 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.

More to come

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 Erdoğan 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.