November 28, 2023
The below is attributable to Spokesperson Matthew Miller:
Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken met today with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on the margins of the NATO Foreign Ministers Meeting in Brussels. Secretary Blinken and Foreign Minister Fidan discussed the conflict in Gaza, including efforts to secure further releases of hostages held by Hamas and the need to ensure the sustained delivery of humanitarian assistance. The Secretary and Foreign Minister Fidan discussed the importance of the longstanding U.S.-Turkish cooperation as NATO Allies and ratifying Sweden’s NATO accession, which Secretary Blinken reiterated should happen as soon as possible.
Secretary Antony J. Blinken And Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan Before Their Meeting
NATO HEADQUARTERS
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Good morning, it’s a pleasure to be with my friend and colleague, Foreign Minister Fidan. We had very, very good consultations and conversations when I was in Ankara just a couple weeks ago. I’m very much looking forward today to pursuing those. We obviously have the crisis in Gaza that we are all working to contend with. We have questions here at NATO as we track toward the summit next June, the 75th anniversary, including Sweden’s accession. We have the ongoing Russian aggression against Ukraine, among many other issues. And I am grateful for the opportunity to share perspectives on all of these issues, grateful for the collaboration that we have with Türkiye – a critical, very valued NATO Ally. So Hakan, good to see you.
FOREIGN MINISTER FIDAN: Thank you. Good morning, all. As Tony said, we are here today to attend the NATO Ministerial Meeting, and we have very important subjects on our plate, and I am sure we will have very frank and open discussions, and we really value our friendship and cooperation. And thank you very much, Tony.
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Thank you.