President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan held talks with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the margins of the COP31 summit, which the latter also attended, along with heads of state and government from across the globe.
In addition to bilateral relations, the talks also focused on the U.S.-Iran war. The Turkish Presidency’s Directorate of Communications said that at Thursday’s meeting in the southern city of Antalya, Erdoğan expressed Türkiye’s desire for an immediate end to the conflict between Iran and the United States and for establishing a lasting peace. He said the ground for consensus should be cemented for the start of a period of stability, and diplomacy should be given a chance.
Erdoğan said it was crucial to set up a negotiation table without wasting more time and underlined that Türkiye would continue supporting peace-oriented efforts in cooperation with other friendly countries in the region.
Pezeshkian said Wednesday that U.S. and Israeli attacks on fuel facilities in Iran released 1.5 million tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, causing extensive environmental damage.
Pezeshkian said at the COP31 U.N. climate summit in Türkiye that attacks on fuel facilities in Asaluyeh released 500,000 tons of carbon dioxide. In comparison, strikes on fuel storage tanks near Tehran produced another 1 million tons.
Israeli strikes targeted oil storage facilities in Tehran on March 7, while gas processing facilities in Asaluyeh in southern Iran were hit on March 18.
The president accused Washington and Tel Aviv of causing severe environmental destruction during the military offensive, which began on Feb. 28.
He said the attacks highlighted a contradiction between international efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and military operations that destroy infrastructure, trigger widespread fires and release pollutants into the atmosphere.
Pezeshkian also condemned Israel's military operations in the Gaza Strip, saying the territory was facing a humanitarian and environmental catastrophe due to the destruction of infrastructure, water resources and ecosystems.
He said attacks on Iranian protected areas and environmental ranger stations also damaged natural resources and threatened future generations.
Calling for international accountability, Pezeshkian urged organizations to document environmental damage caused by U.S. and Israeli military operations in Iran and Gaza and establish mechanisms for compensation.
He also highlighted Iran's renewable energy development, saying the installed capacity increased from 1,250 megawatts to more than 6,150 megawatts during the last two years.
Iran generated more than 4.5 billion kilowatt-hours of clean electricity in 2026, preventing 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions, according to Pezeshkian.
He stressed that peace and environmental protection were inseparable, saying lasting peace was essential to safeguarding the planet.
