Turkey hosts first R4+E3 foreign ministers meeting in Istanbul
Hakan Fidan convenes an unprecedented joint meeting of R4 and the E3 in Istanbul to coordinate responses to shipping attacks, Gaza, Yemen and the war in Ukraine.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan is hosting two linked ministerial meetings in Istanbul on October 23, 2026: the regional R4 group (Türkiye, Egypt, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia) and, for the first time, a combined R4+E3 gathering that brings together those four countries with the E3 trio (France, Germany and the United Kingdom).
The agenda is built around several overlapping crises: the Gaza war and the humanitarian plight of Palestinians, attacks affecting shipping in key waterways, incidents linked to Yemen’s conflict and the wider implications of the war in Ukraine — particularly disruptions to grain exports through the Black Sea.
The seven foreign ministers will discuss immediate security responses and options for longer‑term coordination. Ankara convened the joint R4+E3 meeting as an initiative to broaden regional engagement and to seek common steps on maritime security and food and energy supplies.
Calls to protect shipping and food supplies
German Foreign Minister Johann David Wadephul used remarks ahead of his trip to Istanbul to urge closer cooperation to safeguard international sea lanes. He warned that interruptions to fertiliser deliveries risk stoking food shortages in vulnerable countries, and he singled out several sources of the disruption.
Wadephul said: "All of us feel the consequences of attacks on shipping lines, whether at the petrol station or in the supermarket," and added that "we will not allow Iran and the Houthi militias to hold global trade hostage and strangle the world's supply of energy and fertilizers." He also said that "indiscriminate attacks on ships and neighbouring countries must stop," and accused Russia of aiming to aggravate shortages for the global south through strikes on Black Sea grain shipments.
The R4 mechanism was created by Türkiye, Egypt, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia to deepen regional dialogue and stability; its foreign ministers have met six times so far. The E3 — France, Germany and the United Kingdom — evolved from the trilateral diplomacy on Iran's nuclear programme that began in 2003 and now coordinates on a range of regional and international issues.
Photo: press material from the event
