President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will attend the Sharm el-Sheikh Peace Summit in Egypt, joining a delegation of world leaders to address the ongoing conflict in Gaza. The Turkish president's involvement underlines Trkiye's active diplomatic role in seeking a resolution to the crisis.
According to Burhanettin Duran, communications director of Trkiye, President Erdogan is expected to deliver a speech at the international assembly and conduct bilateral consultations with other participating leaders. The summit is co-chaired by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and US President Donald Trump and is expected to host more than twenty heads of state and government.
The main goal of the Sharm el-Sheikh meeting, as the hosts stated, is to facilitate an end to the war in the Gaza Strip and lay the foundation for lasting peace and security in the Middle East. The guest list includes, among others, French President Emmanuel Macron, King Abdullah II of Jordan, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi.
The summit follows President Trump's recent announcement of a draft ceasefire plan, which he said had been agreed to by Israel and Hamas. The initial phase of this plan, which includes a prisoner exchange and a partial Israeli withdrawal, is reportedly underway. A potential second phase envisions a new government structure for Gaza and the disarmament of Hamas.
Diplomatic efforts in Sharm el-Sheikh are taking place against a backdrop of significant human losses. Palestinian health authorities report that military operations in Gaza have caused more than 67,600 deaths since October 2023, with widespread destruction throughout the coastal enclave.