Davatoglu visits Iran

Turkish foreign minister Ahmed Davutoglu is in Iran on the second stage of a five-country tour. TRT reports that he arrived in Teheran to share his impressions of the nuclear summit in Washington.

Davutoglu began by meeting Iran’s foreign minister Manuchehr Mottaki. At the press conference afterwards, Mottaki reacted severely to a question about the West’s position. Indicating Israel, he announced: “We could even disarm the nations in the region that possess nuclear weapons”

Iran is careful in its present approach to uranium enrichment in another country. Turkey acts as a kind of channel for Iran to communicate with the western world. Davotoglu announced on Tuesday that, as a temporary member of the UN Security Council, Turkey supports the right of nations to nuclear power, but sees nuclear weapons in any country as a threat to humanity. These issues must be solved by diplomacy, not sanctions.”

The Turkish Foreign Minister also met with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinidjad. The next stop is Serbia, after which he travels to Italy, where Turkish Prime Minister Redzhep Erdogan will take part in negotiations.

After Italy, Davodoglu will head to the Estonian capital Tallinn, where a council of NATO foreign ministers will take place, before ending his tour in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, his first visit to the island since the election.