Leading Turkish official Fuat Oktay this week called for the dismantling of Israel’s alleged nuclear weapons stockpile. The head of parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee said Israel’s nuclear capability should be “eliminated as soon as possible”.
Addressing the committee on Wednesday, he said Israel had launched a war on Iran over the latter’s nuclear ambitions, while itself maintaining a significant - albeit undeclared - nuclear arsenal.
For decades, Israel has pursued a policy it describes as “strategic ambiguity,” neither confirming nor denying the existence of a nuclear weapons programme.
Israeli officials say this policy provides a credible deterrent and contributes to regional stability. Successive governments have maintained that Israel would not be the first state in the region to introduce nuclear weapons into the Middle East.
Addressing the Foreign Affairs Committee, Oktay also warned that the Israeli-U.S. war on Iran - now in its second month - had expanded beyond its initial scope, affecting Iraq, Lebanon and the Arab Gulf states.
He said the ongoing partial closure of the Strait of Hormuz had disrupted trade and energy transit, adversely affecting the global economy.
“Although it is Israel’s war, the entire world is paying the price,” he said, adding that Israeli-U.S. military strikes on Iran lacked legitimacy under international law.
While Oktay acknowledged Tehran’s right to self-defence, he also criticised Iranian strikes on civilian infrastructure in neighbouring states, describing them as “unacceptable.”
Addressing lawmakers on the same day, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also criticised Israel, describing it as the “main party” behind what he called an “unlawful war”.
He said the ongoing conflict - and Israel’s leading role in it - “has not only turned our region into a burning ground, but also placed an economic burden on all humanity”.
Türkiye, Erdoğan added, is “determined to stay away from this fire.”
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U.S. President Donald Trump said he sees progress between Israel and Lebanon after talks with Netanyahu, while Hezbollah has rejected a new ceasefire proposal and Israel has ruled out a troop withdrawal.
Armenians will vote on Sunday in a parliamentary election that will determine whether Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan secures a new mandate to pursue peace with Azerbaijan or cedes ground to pro-Russian rivals.
A blaze at a popular market in northeast Thailand sent vendors fleeing and left five people in hospital, with police investigating a suspected electrical short circuit.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has publicly invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to meet for direct talks aimed at ending the war between their countries, saying Ukraine remains ready for peace but will continue fighting if no agreement can be reached.
Thousands of people have taken to the streets in Albania in recent days to protest against a luxury tourism project linked to Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump, and his wife Ivanka Trump.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) said in a statement that its Aerospace Force did not strike the Kuwait Airport passenger terminal on Wednesday, and that the destruction was instead caused by a failed U.S. Patriot missile.
Israel and Lebanon have agreed to implement a ceasefire after U.S.-backed talks in Washington. The deal requires Hezbollah to halt attacks and withdraw from southern Lebanon, while both sides will resume direct talks later this month aimed at reaching a broader agreement.
Protesters chanted “I can’t breathe” and threw bins at police in Southampton on Tuesday (2 June) after footage emerged showing murdered teenager Henry Nowak being arrested as he lay dying from a stab wound.
As Armenia heads toward parliamentary elections on 7 June, the country's relationship with Azerbaijan is emerging as one of the defining issues of the campaign, with analysts and international observers highlighting the role of regional politics in shaping voters’ mindsets.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he sees progress between Israel and Lebanon after talks with Netanyahu, while Hezbollah has rejected a new ceasefire proposal and Israel has ruled out a troop withdrawal.
Disruptions to global energy routes have transformed energy security from an economic concern into a matter of national security, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Wednesday.
Artificial intelligence, digital innovation and youth engagement in environmental governance took centre stage at Eco Expo Central Asia 2026 in Samarkand, as experts and young leaders explored new approaches to climate resilience and sustainability.
A series of signals from Washington, including congressional testimony, a U.S. Embassy statement and a senior diplomat's visit to Tbilisi, has given Georgia's ruling party reason to declare a diplomatic reset. But Washington's message is more nuanced than Tbilisi is suggesting.
Afghan and Uzbek business officials have discussed ways to expand trade, ease transit bottlenecks and address customs challenges facing traders, according to the Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Investment (ACCI).
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