Flanked by Putin, Erdogan Offers to Defuse U.S.-Iran Standoff

Turkey will work to defuse tensions between the U.S. and Iran because it has the ability to talk to both sides, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said at the inauguration of a new natural-gas pipeline to Russia.

“Our region is going through very painful days,” Erdogan said at the ceremony on Wednesday, which was also attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin. “We don’t want Iraq, Syria, Lebanon or the Gulf region, which is home to more than 30% of the energy trade, to become a theater for proxy wars.”