https://www.scmp.com/rss/523353/feed The latest news and top stories on Hakan Fidan, Turkey's Foreign Minister since June 2023 after a distinguished 13-year tenure as head of the National Intelligence Organization (MIT). With a background in military service and academia, holding degrees in political science and international relations, his work at MIT significantly expanded Turkey's intelligence capabilities. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Associated Press Associated Press Top diplomats from key regional powers were gathering in Pakistan on Sunday to discuss how to end the fighting in the Middle East, but there were few signs of progress as Israel and the US kept up strikes on Iran, and Tehran responded by firing missiles and drones across the region. Pakistan said foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt were taking part in the talks in Islamabad. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said he and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian held “extensive... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3348296/regional-diplomats-gather-pakistan-talks-end-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3348296/regional-diplomats-gather-pakistan-talks-end-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Mar 2026 09:59:55 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Iran vowed on Wednesday a “decisive” retaliation for the death of its security chief Ali Larijani, firing off a wave of missiles at Israel which said it killed him in an air strike. A barrage of Iranian missiles killed two people near Israel’s commercial hub Tel Aviv, while Gulf nations intercepted rockets and drones headed for targets including US bases in the region. Iran will hold funerals Wednesday for Larijani and another powerful figure killed Tuesday by Israel, Gholamreza Soleimani, the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3346949/iran-confirms-security-chief-larijani-dead-israel-vows-neutralise-supreme-leader?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3346949/iran-confirms-security-chief-larijani-dead-israel-vows-neutralise-supreme-leader?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Mar 2026 01:20:17 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Turkey’s powerful foreign minister said on Saturday that there is no serious initiative to resume negotiations between the United States and Iran but that he believes Iran is open to backchannel talks. The comments by Hakan Fidan came as Ankara is striving to stay out of the widening war in the Middle East. Ankara, which has good relations with both Washington and Tehran, had attempted to mediate a solution between them before the US and Israel attacked Iran two weeks ago, triggering the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3346637/turkey-says-iran-feels-betrayed-us-attacks-during-nuclear-talks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3346637/turkey-says-iran-feels-betrayed-us-attacks-during-nuclear-talks?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Mar 2026 03:15:17 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Turkey expressed deep concern on Saturday over Israel’s ongoing strikes on Lebanon, voicing fears it could commit “a new genocide” under the guise of fighting Iran-backed Hezbollah. “We are frankly concerned [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu is moving toward a new genocide under the pretext of fighting Hezbollah,” Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told a news conference. “The international community must act as soon as possible in the face of the crimes that Israel continues to... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3346629/israel-may-commit-new-genocide-lebanon-using-iran-war-pretext-turkey-warns?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3346629/israel-may-commit-new-genocide-lebanon-using-iran-war-pretext-turkey-warns?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Mar 2026 17:40:47 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A ballistic missile launched from Iran and heading towards Turkish airspace via Iraq and Syria was destroyed by Nato air defence systems, Turkish officials said on Wednesday. The defence ministry said it had been “engaged and neutralised by Nato air-and-missile defence assets deployed in the eastern Mediterranean”. It did not specify the missile’s intended target. A Turkish official, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, said the missile had been “aimed at a base in Greek Cyprus but veered... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3345473/turkey-says-missile-launched-iran-destroyed-nato?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3345473/turkey-says-missile-launched-iran-destroyed-nato?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Mar 2026 14:52:34 +0000 Fan Chen,Shi Jiangtao Fan Chen,Shi Jiangtao Turkey remains committed to becoming a full member of the Brics bloc, positioning itself as a bridge between Asia and Europe despite widening transatlantic rifts, according to the new Turkish ambassador to China. Ankara, meanwhile, would continue to work with Beijing to deepen trade ties, promote high-level visits, expand cultural and academic exchanges and build political trust through dialogue on security, counterterrorism and other sensitive issues, the envoy told the South China Morning... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3342362/nato-member-turkey-reaffirms-brics-ambitions-amid-transatlantic-rifts?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3342362/nato-member-turkey-reaffirms-brics-ambitions-amid-transatlantic-rifts?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Feb 2026 01:01:39 +0000 Reuters Reuters Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on ‍Saturday that this week’s Trump administration announcement on the composition of a Gaza executive board was not coordinated with Israel and ran counter to ⁠government policy. It said Foreign Minister Gideon Saar would raise the issue with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The statement did not specify what part of the board’s composition contradicted ‍Israeli policy. An Israeli government spokesperson declined to comment. The board, unveiled... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3340285/israel-objects-composition-trump-led-gaza-board-peace?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3340285/israel-objects-composition-trump-led-gaza-board-peace?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 17 Jan 2026 18:05:11 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain As tensions between the United States and Iran threaten to plunge the Middle East into chaos again, regional military powers Turkey and Pakistan have revealed they are planning a tripartite defence partnership with Saudi Arabia. Thursday’s disclosure comes as Iran’s neighbours await clarity on US President Donald Trump’s announcement of a 25 per cent tariff on the Islamic Republic’s trading partners earlier in the week – a measure which threatens to disrupt supply chains across the region. The... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3340136/turkey-pakistan-saudi-arabia-plan-defence-pact-us-iran-row-threatens-middle-east?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3340136/turkey-pakistan-saudi-arabia-plan-defence-pact-us-iran-row-threatens-middle-east?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Jan 2026 07:27:31 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain Washington’s Middle East allies are bracing for what they fear could be “catastrophic” consequences if the United States moves militarily against Iran – a possibility US President Donald Trump again dangled this week by promising Iranian protesters that “help is on its way”. Despite Trump’s vow of support, analysts warn that even a sustained US air campaign would be unlikely to unseat Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s regime. The US president’s rhetoric has followed a now-familiar arc, echoing his... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3339819/trump-vs-iran-gulf-allies-fear-us-help-may-unleash-chaos?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3339819/trump-vs-iran-gulf-allies-fear-us-help-may-unleash-chaos?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 14 Jan 2026 04:11:09 +0000 Reuters Reuters Kurdish fighters rejected a call to leave Syria’s Aleppo on Friday after the government announced a truce in deadly fighting that forced thousands of civilians to flee. Since Tuesday, government forces had been fighting the US-backed Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in Aleppo, the country’s second city. The violence killed 21 people and was the latest challenge for a country still struggling to forge a new path after Islamist authorities ousted long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad just over... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3339287/syria-declares-ceasefire-aleppo-after-deadly-clashes-kurdish-forces?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3339287/syria-declares-ceasefire-aleppo-after-deadly-clashes-kurdish-forces?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 09 Jan 2026 06:15:43 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain A year after the curtain fell on the Assad regime’s five-decade reign of terror, Syria is emerging as a rare beacon of renewal in a conflict-weary region. President Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former jihadi filled with revolutionary zeal to rebuild his home after 14 years of civil war, has successfully consolidated power and won broad international recognition. Over the past 12 months, Syria has “transformed from a global pariah to a fully fledged, integral component of the international community”,... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3336269/syrias-year-epic-transformation-earns-it-trumps-protection?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3336269/syrias-year-epic-transformation-earns-it-trumps-protection?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Dec 2025 08:00:19 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The nearly two-month-old ceasefire in the Gaza Strip will not be complete until Israeli troops withdraw from the Palestinian territory under a peace plan backed by Washington and the United Nations, mediator Qatar’s prime minister has said. “Now we are at the critical moment ... A ceasefire cannot be completed unless there is a full withdrawal of the Israeli forces, [and] there is stability back in Gaza,” Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said on Saturday. Sheikh... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3335463/gaza-truce-incomplete-without-full-withdrawal-israel-qatar-pm?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3335463/gaza-truce-incomplete-without-full-withdrawal-israel-qatar-pm?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 06 Dec 2025 12:40:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Gaza’s future must be Palestinian-led and avoid any new system of tutelage, Turkey and six of its top Muslim allies said on Monday after talks in Istanbul. Turkey, which played a central role in forging the now shaky three-week-old ceasefire, is pushing for Muslim nations to bring their influence to bear on the reconstruction of the embattled territory. “Our principle is that Palestinians should govern the Palestinians and ensure their own security, the international community should support... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3331399/turkey-and-muslim-allies-say-palestinian-self-rule-key-gazas-future?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3331399/turkey-and-muslim-allies-say-palestinian-self-rule-key-gazas-future?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 03 Nov 2025 22:09:16 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain As Syria approaches a watershed moment in its post-war transition, the country’s fragile peace is being tested by renewed diplomatic manoeuvres, sectarian violence and a deepening humanitarian crisis. The latest round of Western and Arab mediation comes a full 14 years since the outbreak of civil war and follows sectarian clashes in mid-July that left 1,400 dead in the southwestern Sweida region, highlighting the urgent need to preserve Syria’s territorial integrity from the designs of... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3320490/syrias-make-or-break-moment-looms-first-post-assad-election?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3320490/syrias-make-or-break-moment-looms-first-post-assad-election?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 02 Aug 2025 08:00:16 +0000