Erdogan Tells MBS Turkey Ready to Mediate Yemen Peace Talks

ANKARA: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has officially offered to act as a mediator between Yemen’s warring factions, signaling a significant diplomatic push by Ankara to stabilize the war-torn region.

In a high-level phone call on Sunday with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), Erdogan expressed Turkey’s readiness to facilitate a dialogue aimed at ending the protracted civil war and the more recent internal fractures within the Yemeni government coalition.

According to the Turkish presidency, Erdogan told the Crown Prince that Turkey “is ready to contribute to efforts aimed at bringing parties together.” The call specifically addressed the deepening rift between rival armed groups that are nominally part of the Yemeni government but are separately backed by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Erdogan emphasized that the “territorial integrity” of both Yemen and Somalia remains a vital priority for Turkey. Ankara has been closely monitoring developments in both nations, viewing their stability as a cornerstone for broader Middle Eastern and Horn of Africa security.

The conversation followed closely on the heels of a statement from Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry, which invited Yemen’s southern factions to a “dialogue” in Riyadh. The Saudi-led coalition has been seeking to mend the cracks within the anti-Houthi alliance to prevent the collapse of the internationally recognized government.

Since 2014, Yemen has been devastated by a conflict triggered by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels’ ousting of the government. The subsequent Saudi-led military intervention has evolved into a complex multi-layered war, which Turkey now seeks to help resolve through diplomatic channels.