As Israel expands its attacks to Rafah, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan repeated Türkiye's warning to the country. Fidan said on Thursday that Ankara expects Israel to consider the warnings by the global community against any attack on the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.
"The international community has come together, issuing warnings to Israel, particularly urging against any attack on Rafah. There are very serious warnings, and we expect Israel to take these warnings into consideration,” Fidan told a news conference with his Georgian counterpart Ilia Darchiashvili in Ankara.
Fidan said Türkiye is exerting significant efforts, particularly in the realm of aid for Gazans, and is closely cooperating with Egypt on the issue. The Turkish Red Crescent, the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) and NGOs are engaged in humanitarian aid efforts under the coordination of the Foreign Ministry, he said, but lamented limitations on the daily amount of aid that can enter the blockaded enclave.
"We are working with the international community to explore ways to increase this allowance,” Fidan said.
The Israeli offensive into Gaza since Oct. 7 has killed more than 28,000 people and caused mass destruction and shortages of necessities. Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which in an interim ruling this January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.
Israel has now announced plans for a ground invasion in Rafah, where more than 1 million people are sheltering, with world leaders ratcheting up pressure to abandon the offensive. The South African government, meanwhile, has requested the ICJ to consider an intervention in Israel’s planned military operations in the Palestinian city.
For his part, Darchiashvili said at the news conference that his country was "proud" of its friendship and strategic partnership with neighboring Türkiye.
"We are really proud of our good neighborliness, friendship and strategic partnership with Türkiye, and we attach great importance to these relations,” Darchiashvili expressed.
Underlining that strategic cooperation helps further strengthen Türkiye-Georgia ties, Darchiashvili said it also helps achieve efficient results in bilateral and multi-formats. "The importance of our strategic cooperation, both regionally and globally, is paramount,” Darchiashvili added.
He highlighted the importance of regional peace and stability for Georgia and that its cooperation with Türkiye be consolidated and further strengthened as soon as possible.
On his meeting with Fidan, he said they agreed to continue active work on organizing a visit by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to Georgia, as well as a visit by Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze to Türkiye.
Darchiashvili also said he conveyed to Fidan an invitation to visit Georgia, adding that they discussed ways to fully utilize the potential between the two nations. During their meeting, Fidan reaffirmed Türkiye's "determined stance and support for Georgia's sovereignty and territorial integrity," Darchiashvili said.
"We discussed with my esteemed counterpart the problems we face in terms of security and the processes in the region in general, and what we can do to strengthen peace and stability in the region," he said, adding that Türkiye maintains its place as Georgia's largest commercial partner.
