The Iranian regime’s Foreign Ministry summoned the Turkish chargé d’affaires in Tehran on Sunday, demanding Ankara explain recent critical comments by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan crtisizing the regime’s policy in the region.
Turkey’s president warned on Thursday that the Iranian regime is trying to dominate the region, adding that Ankara could provide “logistical support” to Saudi Arabia in its military operations against the Houthi rebels in Yemen.
“Iran is trying to dominate the region,” Erdogan warned at a news conference on Thursday.
“Can this be permitted? This has become an annoyance for us, as well as for Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries,” he added. “This really cannot be tolerated.”
In a separate interview with France 24 on Thursday, Erdogan said that Ankara backed military intervention by Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries against the Houthi rebels that are backed by the Iranian regime.
We support Saudi Arabia’s intervention,” Erdoğan said. “Turkey may consider providing logistical support, depending on how the situation evolves,” he added.
Erdogan warned in his press conference that the Iranian regime must withdraw whatever forces it has in Yemen and Syria, and said Tehran is trying to take over Iraq.
“Iran has to … withdraw any forces, whatever it has in Yemen, as well as Syria and Iraq and respect their territorial integrity.”
He accused the Iranian regime of fighting Islamic State – or Daesh – in Iraq in order to boost its own power. Iran has “a sectarian agenda,” he said. Tehran “wants to fill the void that will be created by Daesh,” he added.
Chargé d’affaires Saygın had been summoned because Turkey’s Ambassador Hakan Tekin was not present in Iran at the time.
Last week several officials and parliamentarians in Tehran had called for President Erdoğan to cancel an upcoming visit to Tehran on April 7, though the Iranian foreign ministry had announced no such cancellation had been made.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday he still plans to visit Iran next week, but is watching the crisis in Yemen, which has heightened diplomatic tensions between Ankara and Tehran.
“For the moment we are sticking to our Iranian programme unchanged, but we are monitoring Yemen,” Erdogan told a news conference in Istanbul.
“Developments in Yemen are important. There could be steps that necessitate us making every kind of decision.”
