Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Israel is the most prominent obstacle to lasting and sustainable peace in the region, accusing it of seeking to expand its policies, continue attacking neighboring countries and carry out genocide in Palestine. He made the remarks on Saturday during the second and final day of the TRT World Forum 2026 in Istanbul.
Fidan explained during a session titled “The new geopolitics of interdependence: maritime corridors, chokepoints and trade routes” that the obstacles facing trade routes in the region are not isolated but part of a broader regional dynamic at the center of which is Israel.
Fidan says in the clip: “Israel is trying to expand its policies, continues its attacks on neighboring countries and continues the genocide in Palestine. For this reason, it constitutes an obstacle to sustainable and lasting peace in the region,” stressing the need to prevent further escalation.
The Mecca Defense Alliance and the R4 mechanism
The Turkish minister addressed the regional frameworks bringing Ankara together with Arab and Muslim capitals, saying: “The Mecca Defense Alliance, which brings together Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, aims to strengthen cooperation in collective defense, while the R4 mechanism, comprising Türkiye, Egypt, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, provides a broader platform for developing joint solutions to regional issues.”
Last October 23, Ankara hosted an R4 mechanism meeting in Istanbul that brought Fidan together with his Saudi, Egyptian and Pakistani counterparts. Fidan had previously said that the Mecca Alliance targets no country and is open to all countries in the region.
In this clip, Fidan explains the difference between the two frameworks: a collective defense alliance on the one hand and a broader consultative platform for regional cooperation involving Egypt on the other.
The Strait of Hormuz, Bab el-Mandeb and the Black Sea
Fidan warned that growing insecurity in the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb is disrupting vital energy flows, and that unrest in these maritime corridors has affected the global economy and food and energy security. He said ensuring the security of this region, on which the global economy depends, is “extremely vital.”
In this clip, Fidan cites the Black Sea, saying: “A maritime corridor can become a battlefield, a pipeline can become an instrument of pressure, and a single chokepoint can affect economies thousands of kilometers away.”
The forum is being held this year for its 10th edition under the theme “A world without a center: Who leads when the rules fall?” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan opened it on Friday with a speech criticizing the failure to implement the Gaza peace agreement.
Video: TRT World Forum. Photo: Archive
