Iran-Israel war opens ‘new road' for Mideast: US envoy to Turkey
'What just happened between Israel and Iran is an opportunity for all of us to say: 'Time out. Let's create a new road' (and) Turkiye is key in that new road,' Ambassador Tom Barrack told the Anadolu state news agency.
'The Middle East is ready to have a new dialogue, people are tired of the same old story,' he said, saying it was essential for decades-long enmities to be reframed.
Israel, he said, was 'in the process of being redefined' and its regional neighbours needed to reach agreement with it.
'(Syrian) President (Ahmed) al-Sharaa has indicated that he doesn't hate Israel and that he wants peace on that border. I think that will also happen with Lebanon. It's a necessity to have an agreement with Israel,' he said.
What is happening in Syria is 'in big part due to Turkey' -- a key backer of the Islamist-led rebels who toppled Bashar al-Assad and now form the Damascus government -- and Turkey could play a central role in changing the regional narrative, he said.
US President Donald Trump and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan 'see that this is an opportunity at a really interesting point in both of their lives where they can change the dialogue,' he said.
'And dialogue in the Middle East takes strong leadership.'
Barrack also said he believed there would be a ceasefire soon in the deadly Gaza war which would also speed up a shift in regional thinking.
'We're going to see a ceasefire in Gaza in the near future, I think we have the right team on it,' he told Anadolu.
'Everybody is starting to move back towards the Abraham Accords, especially as the Gaza situation dissipates,' he said referring to the US-sponsored agreements struck by Israel to normalise ties with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco.
And he expressed confidence that Turkey and Israel -- whose relationship has been shattered by the Gaza war -- would resume their former ties.
'It can happen again, it's not a religious issue, it's a misunderstanding of territorial desires. So having a discussion, a dialogue.. will take place.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Pope Leo tells Turkish first lady he might visit Turkey in November, presidency says
Pope Leo XIV meets Emine Erdogan, wife of Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan, at the Vatican, July 2, 2025. Vatican Media/Mario Tomassetti/Handout via REUTERS ISTANBUL and VATICAN CITY (Reuters) -Pope Leo told Turkish First Lady Emine Erdogan that he aims to visit Turkey at the end of November, according to a readout of their meeting at the Vatican on Wednesday by the Turkish presidency. The pope, who held an official meeting with the wife of President Tayyip Erdogan at the Vatican's apostolic palace, told her that officials from Ankara and Vatican were working on the details of the visit, the presidency said in a statement. The Vatican did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the first lady's statement. Leo, elected on May 8 to replace the late Pope Francis, has not yet announced any foreign trips. Francis had been planning a trip to Turkey before his death to celebrate the 1,700th anniversary of an early Church council with Patriarch Bartholomew, the spiritual leader of the Eastern Orthodox Church. Leo has been widely expected to take the trip in Francis' stead. Bartholomew previously told an Italian television station that he and Leo discussed the possibility of the new pope travelling to Turkey in late November. (Reporting by Jonathan Spicer and Joshua McElwee; editing by Mark Heinrich)
Malaysian Reserve
2 hours ago
- Malaysian Reserve
OPEC's oil output climbs as Saudis lead pursuit of market share
OPEC bolstered crude production by the most in four months as Saudi Arabia led a surge of Middle East exports in a bid to reclaim market share, a Bloomberg survey shows. Riyadh is steering the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its partners to revive supplies swiftly despite faltering oil demand and an impending global surplus. The policy is adding downward pressure on crude prices — a potential salve for consumers and a fixation of President Donald Trump. The Saudis — along with Gulf neighbors Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates — also rushed out oil shipments last month amid fears that the Israel-Iran conflict could disrupt flows through the Persian Gulf and its critical sea corridor, the Strait of Hormuz, though traffic ultimately continued unabated. READ: Race to Move Oil Sees Flows Leap Above 40 Million Barrels a Day Production from OPEC's 12 members increased by 360,000 barrels a day in June to an average of 28 million per day, according to the Bloomberg survey. About two-thirds of the hike was provided by the Saudis. The wider OPEC+ coalition has stunned oil traders in recent months with a pivot from defending crude prices to opening the taps, agreeing to revive production in May, June and July at three times the initially-scheduled pace. Delegates say they plan to discuss another similar-sized hike of around 411,000 barrels a day for August at a video-conference on Sunday. The latest boost indicates that, after the restraint shown by many members during the first of their accelerated increases in May — when several tried to atone for earlier over-production — the OPEC+ alliance is now committing more fully to the supply revival. The output flood, coming at a time of slowing demand in China and plentiful output across the Americas, is taking a toll on prices. Brent crude futures traded near $67 a barrel on Wednesday, having slumped 12% last week as a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Iran eased concern over the risk to regional energy exports. Saudi Arabia raised output by 240,000 barrels a day last month to 9.37 million a day, pumping in accordance with its new target, the survey showed. The addition was complemented by several other OPEC members such as the UAE, Kuwait and Iraq. Abu Dhabi delivered the second-biggest gain, adding 90,000 barrels a day to pump an average of 3.4 million barrels a day, according to the survey. Iraq raised output by 30,000 to produce 4.21 million a day. Bloomberg's data indicates both countries are producing considerably above their agreed OPEC+ quotas, but the cartel's own estimates suggest they are pumping broadly in line with their obligations. The duo are among several members that have pledged extra restraints to make up for previous excess output, with Kazakhstan remaining by far the biggest offender. Exports from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and UAE appeared to surge considerably more than production last month, potentially to position supplies away from the regional turmoil. The three nations loaded 11.9 million barrels a day onto tankers in June, the most in just over two years, ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg show. The difference could have been made up by drawing from stockpiles. Bloomberg's production survey is based on ship-tracking data, information from officials and estimates from consultants Rapidan Energy Group, FGE, Kpler Ltd. and Rystad Energy. –BLOOMBERG
The Sun
3 hours ago
- The Sun
Israel says detained Iran-linked ‘terrorist cell' in Syria
JERUSALEM: Israel's military said on Wednesday its had apprehended members of an Iranian-backed 'terrorist cell' in southern Syria, where state TV reported three arrested by Israeli troops. Since the December overthrow of Syria's longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad, Israel has carried out hundreds of air strikes primarily on military sites and sent troops to carry out raids. An Israeli military statement on Wednesday said that in a 'targeted night-time' raid, troops 'apprehended several terrorists' and seized weapons. It said the operation targeted 'a terrorist cell operated by Iran', Israel's arch-foe against which it had fought an unprecedented 12-day war last month. Syrian state TV said an Israeli patrol 'consisting of eight vehicles and around 40 soldiers arrested three individuals from the village of Al-Bassali' in the Quneitra area of southwest Syria bordering the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor reported an operation which 'resulted in the arrest of three citizens of Palestinian origin'. It said the people were inside a farm 'at the time of the raid, without any clashes or intervention by (Syrian) military or security forces in the area'. According to the Observatory, the overnight operation came two months after a relative of the three was arrested and transferred to an Israeli prison. Since Assad's fall, Israel has carried out strikes in Syria aimed at denying military assets to the Islamist-led interim administration. It has also deployed troops across the demilitarised zone on the Syrian side of the armistice line that used to separate the opposing forces on the Golan, with Israeli troops regularly carrying out raids in southern Syria. On June 12, Syria said the Israeli military killed one civilian and detained seven people during an overnight incursion, with the Israeli army saying it seized members of Palestinian militant group Hamas. Israel said Monday it was 'interested' in striking normalisation agreements with Syria and neighbouring Lebanon, but insisted the strategic Golan Heights -- which Israel seized from Syria in 1967 and later annexed in a move not recognised by the United Nations -- would 'remain part of' Israel under any peace accord.
