Iran Rejects Turkish FM’s Comparison of Tehran’s Regional Policy to Israel

Iran has strongly rejected comments by Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, who compared Tehran’s regional security strategy with Israel’s actions in the Middle East. Speaking at a weekly press conference on Monday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei described the comparison as “astonishing,” arguing that Israel is inherently expansionist and warning that such remarks could serve Israeli interests.

Baghaei dismissed Fidan’s characterization of Iran’s regional role, insisting that Tehran does not maintain proxy forces in the region. “Iran has no proxies in the region. The only proxy in the region is the Zionist regime,” he said, urging Turkish officials to base their assessments on what Iran considers the realities on the ground and to avoid repeating narratives that could be exploited by Israel.

The exchange followed Fidan’s remarks that Iran has long justified supporting allied groups in neighboring countries as a form of pre-emptive security, comparing that rationale to Israel’s own security arguments. While the Turkish foreign minister criticized the U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran and Israel’s operations across the region, he also said that Iran’s strikes on U.S. and Israeli targets were unacceptable, highlighting Ankara’s effort to criticize both sides amid escalating regional tensions.