Türkiye has thrown its full support behind NATO’s new pledge to raise collective defence spending to 5% of GDP by 2035, with Ankara confirming it is already surpassing the previous 2% benchmark and accelerating efforts to bolster national and regional security.
A senior official from the Turkish Ministry of National Defense said Türkiye, as NATO’s second-largest army, is among the top contributors to the alliance’s operations and has fulfilled all capability targets set by the bloc.
“Türkiye is above the 2% target under the Defence Spending Pledge,” the source said Thursday. “We continue to invest heavily in defence industry production and innovation.”
NATO members formally agreed on Wednesday to raise the spending target, citing rising threats from Russia and the need to build both military capacity and civilian infrastructure resilience. The revised target includes a minimum of 3.5% of GDP for core defence and 1.5% for critical infrastructure, such as transport and digital networks.
Ankara confirmed it is advancing a wide range of projects, including its multi-layered “Steel Dome” air defence system and programmes to develop hypersonic, ballistic and cruise missile capabilities, unmanned vehicles, and next-generation naval and aerial platforms.
The new NATO framework also allows allies to count weapons and ammunition supplied to Ukraine as part of the spending formula. This may ease pressure on some members but could still pose a challenge for several countries — including Spain, Belgium, France, and Italy — struggling with budget constraints. Slovakia also voiced reservations, while Spain officially opposed the agreement.
The bloc will review progress in 2029, following the next U.S. presidential election. President Donald Trump, attending the summit, praised the shift: “I left there saying these people really love their countries. It’s not a ripoff. They want to protect their country, and they need the United States.
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Kazakhstan has vowed to speed up its investigation into the Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) crash near Aktau, as mounting diplomatic pressure and geopolitical tensions push the disaster further into the international spotlight.
U.S. President Donald Trump has said the United States has a “virtually unlimited supply” of munitions and is capable of sustaining military action indefinitely, as the conflict with Iran entered its fourth day.
The United Nations has called for an investigation into a deadly attack on a girls’ primary school in Iran, which Iranian officials say has killed more than 100 children. The U.S. has said its forces “would not” deliberately target a school.
Shahid Motahari Sub-Speciality Hospital in northern Tehran and parts of the Golestan Palace were bombed on day two of the U.S.‑Israel strikes. AnewZ Touraj Shiralilou is in Iran's capital city and said that the facility was flattened in an airstrike.
The Kremlin is utilising the recent United States and Israeli military strikes on Iran to validate its ongoing war in Ukraine. Russian officials are pointing to the escalation in the Middle East as evidence that Western nations do not adhere to international rules.
Saudi Arabia’s state oil giant Saudi Aramco closed its Ras Tanura refinery on Monday following an Iranian drone strike, an industry source told Reuters as Tehran retaliated across the Gulf after a U.S.-Israeli attack on Iranian targets over the weekend.
The Middle East crisis intensifies after the deadly attack on the compound of the Supreme Leader of Iran Ali Khamenei on Saturday that killed him, other family members and senior figures. Iran has launched retaliatory strikes on U.S. targets in the region.
U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. military has enough stockpiled weapons to fight wars "forever"; in a social media post late on Monday. The remarks came hours before conflict in Iran and the Middle East entered its fourth day.
Türkiye raised its security level for Turkish-flagged vessels in the Strait of Hormuz to Level 3 on Sunday (2 March). The development follows Iranian restrictions on shipping after U.S. and Israeli strikes and confirmation of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s death.
Strikes across the Middle East are intensifying, fuelling travel disruption, driving up global energy prices and forcing diplomatic missions to shut their doors as tensions continue to rise.
U.S. President Donald Trump has said the United States has a “virtually unlimited supply” of munitions and is capable of sustaining military action indefinitely, as the conflict with Iran entered its fourth day.
The United Nations has called for an investigation into a deadly attack on a girls’ primary school in Iran, which Iranian officials say has killed more than 100 children. The U.S. has said its forces “would not” deliberately target a school.
U.S. first lady, Melania Trump chaired a UN Security Council meeting on children and education in conflict on Monday (2 March), a move criticised by Iran as hypocritical following U.S. and Israeli strikes that triggered a UN warning about risks to children.
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