Türkiye, Iran partially suspend passenger traffic at shared border crossings

Türkiye and Iran have suspended day-trip passenger crossings at their shared border, Türkiye's trade minister said Monday, as a U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran entered its third day.

In a statement, Omer Bolat said Iranian customs officials were allowing Iranian citizens to return home via Türkiye, while Turkish authorities were permitting Turkish citizens - as well as third-country nationals - to enter Türkiye from Iran.

“All border crossings are being managed in close coordination with the Iranian authorities and our relevant institutions,” the trade minister said.

He added that cross-border cargo traffic had not been interrupted.

“All our units continue to perform their duties on high alert to ensure the continuation of Türkiye’s border crossing services and trade flows,” Bolat said.

The announcement comes amid an escalating regional conflict in which Israel and the United States have carried out hundreds of strikes across Iran. Tehran has responded by targeting sites in several U.S.-aligned Arab Gulf states.

Calls for diplomacy

Since the conflict began, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has spoken by phone with several regional and international leaders, including his U.S. counterpart, Donald Trump, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

On Sunday, Erdogan also held separate phone calls with the Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Mishal al-Ahmad al-Jaber Al Sabah, and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

During his conversation with the Saudi leader, Erdogan warned that the ongoing conflict could have “severe repercussions on regional and global security” without a diplomatic resolution.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has also held phone conversations with his Iranian and Omani counterparts, reiterating calls for a return to diplomacy.

After the conflict first erupted on Saturday, Erdogan decried the joint U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran as a violation of the country's sovereignty.

However, he also described Iran’s retaliatory strikes on targets in the Arab Gulf States as “unacceptable,” warning that the entire region risked being “dragged into a circle of fire.”

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