Turkey’s intelligence agency quietly became a key broker in the US-Iran ceasefire, using its ties with the United States, Iran and Pakistan to help de-escalate tensions while focused on protecting its own security interests.
A two-week US-Iran ceasefire took effect Wednesday, brokered primarily by Pakistan, halting about 40 days of fighting but leaving core disputes unresolved. Talks will commence in Islamabad Saturday, where a US delegation led by Vice President JD Vance is set to meet Iranian officials to discuss terms for a lasting end to the war.
While Pakistan has been cast as the main mediator, Turkey has also played an intermediary role in indirect talks between Washington and Tehran, both before and during the conflict.
Ankara was among several backchannels that conveyed a US proposal for talks between Vance and Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, a Turkish source told Al-Monitor in late March, as part of its broader facilitation role in paving the way for the ceasefire.
Within a month, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan held more than 150 calls with US officials and regional counterparts, including over a dozen with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, according to an Al-Monitor tally based on official Turkish readouts.
After the ceasefire, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif thanked Turkey, China, Egypt, Qatar and Saudi Arabia for their roles. He later spoke with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, with both sides praising each other’s efforts ahead of the truce.
Quiet intermediary
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