Turkey Mediates Iran-US Talks, Hosts NATO Summit Amid Corruption Case
Fidan spoke by phone with Qatar's PM on June 4 to review Iran-US negotiation positions; Turkey and Qatar remain two of the three main mediators alongside Pakistan, with Fidan saying a US-Iran deal is closer than ever. The Defence Ministry warned Greece and Greek Cypriots over rising armament spending ahead of Turkey's NATO summit hosting on July 7-8 in Ankara. Former Antalya Mayor Bocek testified he delivered 950,000 euros in cash to the late Manisa mayor on instructions from then-CHP leader Özgür Özel; Finnish President Stubb called for EU expansion to include Türkiye.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan spoke by telephone on June 4 with Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani to review the latest state of Iran-US negotiations. Turkish Foreign Ministry sources confirmed the call without disclosing its content. Turkey and Qatar, alongside Pakistan, have functioned as the three main external mediators in the talks since the US-Israel offensive against Iran began on February 28. Fidan told Nikkei Asia last week that a US-Iran agreement was 'closer than ever,' and Qatar's PM has held direct meetings with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance in Washington. Iran's parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi have separately visited Doha for talks; negotiations have deadlocked since an April 8 ceasefire and one Pakistan round failed.
Turkey's Defence Ministry issued a warning to Greece and the Greek Cypriot administration on Thursday, urging them to halt 'an arms race' and what it described as rising defence spending and regional military initiatives. The ministry said it was closely monitoring armament developments in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean. The statement came days before the NATO summit in Ankara, set for July 7-8 at the Bestepe Presidential Compound, which Turkey is hosting and where Erdogan has proposed facilitating a Trump-Putin meeting on the sidelines.
Former Antalya Mayor Muhittin Bocek, under arrest on corruption charges, testified on June 4 that he personally delivered 950,000 euros in cash to the late Manisa Mayor Ferdi Zeyrek in January 2024, acting on instructions from Özgür Özel, who was then CHP party leader. Bocek said he also passed secret messages between party officials. The testimony represents the most direct accusation yet linking Özel to the cash-delivery operation at the centre of a widening CHP corruption investigation.
Finnish President Alexander Stubb, speaking at a Helsinki conference, proposed expanding the European Union to approximately 40 member states, a list he said could include Türkiye, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Norway. Stubb cited shared democratic values and transatlantic alignment. Ankara's EU membership bid has been formally frozen since 2018, but the proposal reflects a broader debate about EU enlargement prompted by the Ukraine accession timeline and shifting European security architecture.