Fidan warns of the expansion of the Gaza war if a ceasefire is not reached

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan warned of the expansion of the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip, unless the 'massacres and genocide' there are stopped and a ceasefire agreement is reached. Fidan said in a press statement following his participation in the informal meeting of NATO foreign ministers in the Czech capital, Prague, last night: If 'the massacres and genocide are not stopped, and an immediate ceasefire is not reached and humanitarian aid is not allowed to enter the Strip.' Gaza and then moving to the two-state solution, this problem will grow and expand.' He added: "We warned during the NATO meeting against this problem (the Israeli-Palestinian conflict) turning into a global security issue that would lead to other parties also getting involved in it." He called for NATO to take a "principled" position towards the Palestinian issue, just as is the case with its position towards Ukraine in its war with Russia. He stressed that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict also has the potential to become a global security issue, in addition to being a regional problem. He explained that Turkey is almost the only country that continues its efforts to draw attention to what is happening in the Gaza Strip. In a related context, Fidan touched on his meeting with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in the capital, Madrid, as part of the delegation of the ministerial committee assigned by the extraordinary Arab-Islamic Summit regarding developments in Gaza, stressing that his discussions with Sanchez were important and fruitful, praising Spain's decision to officially recognize the State of Palestine. Fidan explained that European countries such as Spain, Ireland, Norway and Slovenia officially recognized the State of Palestine, strengthening Turkey's position in this regard. The Turkish Minister pointed out that although nearly 150 countries officially recognize the State of Palestine, the latter's borders and sovereignty are being blatantly violated and occupied by Israel, stressing that Palestine cannot enjoy an effective state under this occupation. In the same context, Fidan said that during their meetings in Europe last week, they discussed ways to strengthen the Palestinian Authority and find solutions to its financial problems. The Turkish Foreign Minister said: We have previously stressed the need to give the Palestinian Authority an opportunity to stand on its feet and act as a full-fledged state, instead of just providing aid to it. In this case, there will be no need for the international community to provide this degree of economic aid to Palestine. Fidan stressed that "what Palestine needs is not economic support, but rather granting it the rights of sovereignty and land before that." Regarding Spain's official recognition of the State of Palestine, Fidan stressed the importance of Madrid's keenness to make the recognition 'effective,' describing this step as 'sincere and important.' He added that during their meeting with Cansiz, they discussed ways to make the recognition decision 'effective,' no ting that he conveyed to the Spanish side 'Turkey's clear and concrete views in this regard.' In addition, the Turkish minister said that they also discussed in Spain the lawsuit filed against Israel in the International Court of Justice, and ways for countries to join it, as a means of pressure on Israel, as he put it. He reported that there are several countries, including Spain, that view positively the idea of joining the case filed against Israel in the 'International Court of Justice.' Fidan indicated that his country joined the aforementioned lawsuit last month, indicating that Turkey, after announcing this step to public opinion, informed the General Secretariat of International Justice of this through its embassy in The Hague. He explained that Ankara is currently preparing, as a third stage, to submit its legal text on this matter to the International Court, indicating that Turkish jurists, in cooperation with their foreign counterparts, are working on this matter, in coordination with the Minis try of Justice and the General Directorate of Law in the Turkish Foreign Ministry. Source: National Iraqi News Agency