Organization of Islamic Cooperation meeting: Syria, Yemen and jihadist groups
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation summit is being held in Istanbul with the participation of leaders of more than 30 countries. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Saudi King Salman are also attending the summit.
On Thursday (April 14/26 Farvardin), the 13th Summit of the Heads of State of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation will begin its work in Istanbul under the slogan “Unity and Solidarity for Justice and Peace.” The summit will be attended by the King of Saudi Arabia, the presidents of Iran, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and other Islamic countries.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan presented the Saudi king with Turkey's highest state decoration in Ankara. He told King Salman: "Your wise management in a region where we have faced many problems has guaranteed peace, tranquility and regional stability." King Salman called Saudi-Turkish relations "strategic."
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The important topics of the Istanbul meeting have been announced as the civil war in Yemen, Syria, the threat posed by jihadist groups and the fight against terrorism, the issue of the Palestinian territories, and the Karabakh-Azerbaijan conflict.
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation is the largest and oldest transregional organization with 57 member states and is the largest intergovernmental organization after the United Nations. Its current presidency is held by Egypt. Its permanent secretariat is in Jeddah and its website operates in three languages: French, English and Arabic. Its meeting is held every three years.
Hassan Rouhani's three-day visit to Türkiye
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani will deliver a speech on the first day of the Istanbul summit. He told reporters at Mehrabad Airport on Wednesday evening (April 15) before leaving Tehran: "Today, in the Islamic world, we are faced with the problem of terrorism, extremism and sectarianism, and unfortunately, aggression by some countries against others, and one of the goals of the Organization of the Islamic Conference is the unity of the Islamic Ummah and the resolution of differences in the Islamic world."
The Saudi king received a medal from the host.
The topic of “Iran’s regional interventions”
In the 47-year history of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, its only periodic meeting has been held in Tehran, in 1997.
Before the summit began, a meeting of foreign ministers of Islamic countries was held in Istanbul, one of the topics of which was "regional interference by Iran and Hezbollah."
Read more: Al-Jubeir: Doors to relations will open if Iran changes behavior
The IRNA news agency reported that Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif objected to “the proposal of four anti-Iranian clauses and one clause against Lebanon’s Hezbollah in the draft declaration of the summit, which was submitted by Saudi Arabia and supported by some of its allies,” at a meeting in Istanbul on Tuesday (April 12). IRNA also emphasized: “The adoption of the anti-Iranian and anti-Lebanese Hezbollah clauses shows the instrumental misuse of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation by Saudi Arabia and some allied countries for their destructive political goals.”
The 13th Islamic Conference in Istanbul will last for two days. According to the Anadolu Agency, Turkey is seeking to adopt a declaration it has drafted that addresses “issues and problems of the Islamic world and solutions.”
