Türkiye's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Monday underlined the need for Europeans to ensure their own security, calling it "an existential need."
"As Europeans, we are all in the same boat. Ensuring the safety and security of our own home is an existential necessity. We cannot delegate our own security to others," Fidan said in his address at an ambassadors' conference in Lisbon.
"We are trying to find our way in a system which lacks sufficient guarantees for guiding the change in a responsible way," he said, urging to avoid fatalism.
He said there is an increase in protectionism and hard power, and spoke about the deepening disputes and the increasingly blurred lines between peace and war.
Fidan said threats now extend far beyond traditional battlefields and that artificial intelligence and new technologies are reshaping the nature of conflict.
He said those who are able to combine technology with strategy will hold a decisive advantage.
Underlining that Gaza has become the region's bleeding wound, Fidan said as the second phase of the October ceasefire approaches, Türkiye is ready to assume responsibility in governance and reconstruction mechanisms.
Stressing that the peace plan must ultimately result in the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state, the foreign minister said violations of international law have spilled over from Gaza to Lebanon, Syria, Iran, and beyond.
"Recently, we have seen this instability take on a new form," Fidan said. "The Netanyahu government's recognition of Somaliland is another manifestation of a strategy that exports instability by undermining the territorial integrity of regional countries."
Pointing out that there is an opportunity to establish stability in Syria through constructive engagement, Fidan said: "A stable and functioning Syria is essential not only for regional peace, but also for promoting socioeconomic recovery and preventing irregular migration. These outcomes also directly benefit Europe."
Fidan said that despite the EU's formal commitments to cooperate with non-EU NATO allies, Türkiye has long been excluded from the EU's security and defense mechanisms. The main reason for this, he said, is that a small number of member states place narrow national agendas above Europe's broader strategic interests.
With its demographic dynamism, economic potential, and security capabilities, Türkiye is a key actor capable of accelerating the success story Europe needs, he said.
