Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Wednesday urged the United States to address its disagreements with Iran step by step rather than through a comprehensive agreement, saying such an approach would help avoid putting Iranian officials in a humiliating position and adding that Tehran was prepared to hold talks on its nuclear program.
U.S. President Donald Trump said last week that Washington had an "armada" heading toward Iran but hoped he would not have to use it, as he renewed warnings to Tehran against killing protesters or restarting its nuclear program.
Tehran cracked down on anti-government protests earlier this month, leading to the death and arrest of thousands of people. Officials blamed the unrest on "armed terrorists and rioters" linked to Iran's foes, the U.S. and Israel. Rights groups describe the protests as the biggest since the 1979 revolution.
Speaking to Al-Jazeera, Fidan reiterated that Türkiye opposed any foreign intervention or attack on Iran, saying it would be "wrong to start the war again."
"My advice to the American friends: close the files one by one with the Iranians. Start with nuclear, close it, then the other, then the other," Fidan said.
"If you put them as a package, all of them, it will be very difficult for our Iranian friends to digest," he said. "It sometimes might seem humiliating for them. It will be very difficult to explain to not only themselves, but also to the leadership."
In June, the U.S. struck Iran's nuclear facilities amid heightened regional tensions with Israel over the war in Gaza. Talks on Tehran's nuclear program – which it says is for peaceful purposes – have made little progress.
Türkiye, a NATO member that shares a border with Iran, has said it reached out to both U.S. and Iranian officials.
Ankara has said Tehran must be allowed to handle its domestic issues on its own, warning that any destabilization would exceed the region's capacity to manage at this time.
Fidan has also said Israel was still looking to attack Iran.
