Turkish FM to Zarif: Erdogan was unaware of sensitivity of the poem
In a telephone conversation between the Turkish Foreign Minister and Iranian Foreign Minister, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu emphasized the close and friendly relations between Iran and Turkey and assured that the Turkish President fully respects Iran's national sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu referred to Recep Tayyip Erdogan's poetry reading in Baku, which upset Iranians, and said: "The Turkish president was not aware of the sensitivity of the poem and considered it only in connection with Lachin and Nagorno-Karabakh, and therefore read it at the Baku ceremony."
Mohammad Javad Zarif also expressed hope that bilateral relations in the context of mutual trust will expand further.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan traveled to the Azerbaijan Republic on Thursday to participate in a military parade ceremony held on the occasion of the liberation of the Armenian-occupied zones.
At the ceremony, which was also attended by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Erdogan recited a couplet of a separatist poem about the Aras River on the Iranian-Azerbaijani border.
On Friday, the Iranian Foreign Ministry summoned the Turkish ambassador to Tehran and announced the Islamic Republic's strong protest against Erdogan's separatist remarks, calling for an immediate response from the Turkish government.
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