Türkiye's strong reaction to the statements of the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman
The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman had said that the country's patience with Turkey had a "limit." In response, the Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman called these remarks "unacceptable and incomprehensible" and called on Iran to reconsider its regional policy.
Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Huseyin Muftioglu called his Iranian counterpart’s recent statements “neither acceptable nor understandable.” On Monday (February 20), Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi called Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s remarks regarding Iran “inappropriate and irrelevant” and said: “Iran’s patience with Turkey has a limit.”
Hours after these statements were published, Hüseyin Muftiğlu strongly criticized Iran, saying: "It is neither acceptable nor understandable for a country that does not hesitate to send refugees seeking shelter to battlefields to consider others as the cause of regional tensions and instability."
According to Turkey's Anadolu Agency, the country's Foreign Ministry spokesman told reporters that Iran "should take constructive steps and review its own policies instead of blaming countries that criticize its regional policies."
Verbal tensions between Iran and Turkey have escalated significantly in recent days. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Qassemi said that the country hopes that “Turkish officials will be more discreet in their statements about Iran so that it does not ultimately lead to our accountability.”
Summoning the Turkish ambassador
On Monday (March 2), Iran summoned the Turkish ambassador to Tehran in response to the statements of Turkish President Erdogan and Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.
Erdogan recently said during his visit to several Arab countries in the region: "We do not want to see the division of Syria. But you know there are those who are seeking to exploit sectarian divisions in both Syria and Iraq."
Turkey’s foreign minister also recently accused Iran of “interventionist actions” at the Munich Security Conference and sharply criticized the country for “promoting sectarianism.” Cavusoglu said that Iran “is trying to turn Iraq and Syria into two Shiite states, which is dangerous.”
At the Munich Security Conference, Saudi Arabia and Israel also strongly attacked Iran’s policies. In his speech, the Saudi foreign minister described Tehran as “the main sponsor of terrorism in the world and a factor in instability in the Middle East.” The Israeli defense minister also said that Iran’s ultimate intention was “to weaken the Middle East and Riyadh.”
Source: DW
