Turkish Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gül arrived in Tehran on Saturday for a working visit aimed at helping restart negotiations over Iran's nuclear program.
Ankara's Foreign Ministry said Türkiye had been engaged in consultations with all relevant parties and that Gül's trip was intended to share the resulting assessment directly with Iranian officials at the highest level. The ministry noted that a Western incentive package presented to Iran on 6 June 2006 had improved the chances for a diplomatic resolution, and that Gül's visit was designed to support talks under that framework.
Diplomatic sources said Gül was scheduled to meet Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani, and former President Hashemi Rafsanjani. A meeting with Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki was not planned, as he was to be in Germany over the weekend.
Türkiye also requested an audience with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, though Iranian officials said they would respond to that request once Gül was in Tehran. Sources noted Khamenei rarely meets foreign ministers.
No press statement was expected before the visit concluded on 25 June. Gül was also scheduled to visit the United States from 4 to 7 July, and to return to Tehran on 8 to 9 July for a summit of Iraq's neighboring states.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in June 2006, in its own words.