Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan strongly denounced Israel’s recent airstrikes on Iranian territory as “insidious” and a direct threat to regional stability, echoing growing international concern over an escalated Israeli-Iranian conflict. His strong condemnations is part of an increasing international alarm over Israeli-Iranian hostilities.
Erdogan Rebukes Israel Over Strikes
Speaking before Turkey’s parliament on Monday, Erdogan strongly denounced Israeli’s strikes as reckless, aggressive and lawless; asserting they were part of an “insidious agenda” meant to derail diplomatic negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program (The Times UK; Wall Street Journal) (Sources).
He warned that Israel’s incursions pose a great risk to regional stability and accused it of seeking to “derail peaceful dialogue” while seeking political leverage at global scale.
International Reverberations: Russia, Germany and the G7
Erdogan’s words were repeated during a call between himself and Russian President Vladimir Putin where both leaders made statements calling for an immediate cessation of hostilities while emphasizing political resolution over military action (The Times.co.uk; Reuter.com and The Guardian.com).
German Chancellor Merz stressed the danger of further escalation at the G7 summit and reiterated calls for nuclear diplomacy rather than strikes as the path towards solutions.
Erdogan warned of Israel’s military campaign undermining Turkey’s role as mediator between Iran, the U.S., and European parties during nuclear talks between them all. Ankara has long served as regional diplomatic broker; this role, according to him, could come under threat should Israel continue with what he referred to as “banditry.” Turkey severed ties with Israel in late 2024 but diplomatic ties have remained tenuous ever since; Tuesday’s comments suggest no imminent thaw between relations.
Reactions from Iran and Global Opinion
Iran responded positively to Turkey’s intervention as “a powerful voice for stability,” calling it a powerful voice for international stability. Tehran sees Israel’s strikes not only as acts of war but as attempts by it to preempt nuclear negotiations – echoing Erdogan’s narrative – while European, United, and American voices urge de-escalation and diplomatic engagement with dailysabah.com, DeccanHerald.com and Turkish Minute, who all advocate a ceasefire and diplomatic approach towards Israel from their respective perspectives.
Context of Escalation
Tensions have increased following Israel’s “Operation Rising Lion,” which, on June 13, targeted more than 100 military and nuclear sites inside Iran – including suspected enrichment facilities – including suspected IRGC Chief Hossein Salami’s house and several of his commanders including IRG Chief Hossein Salami who may have been killed (according to reports by The Times and Guardian, as well as by Wikipedia and en.wikipedia.org).
Iran launched missile and drone strikes against Israeli population centers, killing dozens and causing significant damage in cities such as Tel Aviv and Haifa (APNEWS/the Guardian/theguardian.com, September 8).
These events prompted global leaders to intervene diplomatically and urge against further escalation.
What Erdogan Wants In his statement on December 10, Erdogan called upon international stakeholders to exert pressure on Israel in order to end its aggressive actions, protect nuclear dialogue negotiations and prevent full-scale war from breaking out. Erdogan stated, “Now is the time to restrain Israel’s insidious strategy” while exhorting U.N., G7 and Islamic nations to speak as one voice against any possible further warring behavior from Tel Aviv.
Outlook: Diplomacy or More Conflict? With military operations still ongoing and casualties mounting on both sides, Turkey’s vocal opposition represents a broad breach in international consensus. Whether or not Erdogan’s call will result in effective diplomatic pressure remains to be seen–while rhetoric intensifies, the situation around Iran and Israel braces for additional unrest.