Politics
Turkish Parliament speaker urges reform of global institutions
Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş on Friday called for intensified efforts to build a new global political and economic order, arguing that existing international institutions are increasingly unable to respond to conflicts and global crises.
Speaking at a roundtable event hosted by the Swedish Institute of International Affairs during an official visit to Stockholm, Kurtulmuş met with academics, diplomats and representatives of think tanks to discuss Türkiye’s role in a changing world, the future of Europe, NATO and the reform of the international system.
Referring to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s long-standing call for reform of the United Nations Security Council, “The world is bigger than five,” Kurtulmuş said, “We must intensify our efforts toward establishing a new global economic and political architecture. More than ever, what is needed today is a renewed commitment to dialogue, negotiation and mediation for peace.”
Kurtulmuş emphasized that the world was undergoing a profound transformation marked by armed conflicts, migration pressures, climate change and rapid technological advances. He argued that current international institutions have suffered a loss of both legitimacy and effectiveness.
“The institutions still exist, but their influence is becoming increasingly limited,” he said. “The United Nations Security Council’s capacity to prevent crises and end wars has been largely neutralized by the veto powers of its permanent members.”
He pointed to the Russia-Ukraine war, the conflict involving Iran, and the situation in Gaza as examples of the shortcomings of the current international system.
Kurtulmuş accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza and imposing an apartheid-like regime on Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, describing the Palestinian issue as a test of humanity’s conscience.
“When Gaza is destroyed and this is described as an operation, when the discourse of counterterrorism is used to justify genocide, and when humanitarian aid blockades are presented as security measures, international law begins to collapse,” he said.
The speaker also highlighted growing strategic ties between Türkiye and Sweden following Stockholm’s accession to NATO in 2024, saying the alliance remained a cornerstone of Euro-Atlantic security.
Kurtulmuş noted that Türkiye would host two major NATO gatherings in the coming weeks: the NATO Parliamentary Summit in Istanbul on June 28-29 and the NATO Summit of Heads of State and Government in Ankara on July 7-8.
He said the meetings would provide an opportunity to reaffirm the alliance’s political unity and strategic objectives while strengthening transatlantic ties.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan persuaded U.S. President Donald Trump to abandon a plan to arm Iranian opposition groups and Iraqi Kurdish groups against Tehran after details of the proposal were allegedly leaked to Türkiye by officials within the White House, Israeli media outlets reported Friday.
Citing security sources, The Jerusalem Post reported that Israeli officials believed Washington would support the proposal because it could increase pressure on Tehran without requiring U.S. ground forces to enter Iran.
The report alleged that details of the initiative, which involved arming Iranian opposition and Iraqi Kurdish groups, were passed to Türkiye by certain White House officials. According to the claims, Erdoğan subsequently raised the issue with U.S. President Donald Trump and convinced him to cancel the plan.
Israeli sources reportedly accused U.S. Vice President JD Vance of leaking information about the proposal. However, Vance’s special assistant and press secretary, Luke Schroeder, denied the allegation.
Under the reported plan, Israel would have provided not only a no-fly zone for Kurdish groups but also air support against Iranian forces attempting to halt their advance.
The report further claimed that Israel intended to supply opposition groups with weapons seized from Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. It added that publication of the information had received approval from Israeli military censors.
The allegations follow remarks by former Israeli Military Intelligence Directorate (AMAN) chief Tamir Hayman, who recently told U.S. broadcaster PBS that Israel had explored a range of covert options aimed at destabilizing the Iranian government.
According to Hayman, those discussions included encouraging attacks by groups opposed to Tehran, including organizations linked to the PKK terrorist group, and other efforts designed to weaken the Iranian leadership.
Hayman also claimed that a plan to arm anti-Iran Kurdish groups ultimately failed after Erdoğan persuaded Trump not to proceed.
Separate reports in the Israeli press later alleged that Mossad had supplied weapons to Iranian opposition Kurdish groups as part of efforts to undermine the government in Tehran.
A fisherman was killed after a Turkish-flagged fishing boat was attacked in the Black Sea west of the Crimean Peninsula, causing the vessel to sink, according to a statement from Türkiye’s Coast Guard Command.
The vessel, identified as the DURU 67, was operating off Sevastopol when it sustained damage during the attack on June 5, the statement said.
A nearby Turkish fishing boat, BURAK KAYA, evacuated five injured fishermen from the sinking vessel and began heading toward the northern Turkish coast near Inebolu. However, one of the injured fishermen, who was reported to be in critical condition, died during the journey.
The Coast Guard said patrol vessel TCSG-96 reached BURAK KAYA at 7:20 p.m. local time in the northern section of Türkiye’s Search and Rescue Region, about 115 nautical miles from İnebolu Port.
The body of the deceased fisherman and the injured crew members were transferred to the Coast Guard vessel, where medical treatment was initiated before returning to İnebolu.
The perpetrator of the attack was not immediately identified.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan reaffirmed Ankara’s commitment to keeping the Rohingya crisis on the international agenda and pledged continued support for displaced Muslims during talks with Bangladeshi Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman in Dhaka on Friday.
Speaking at a joint news conference following their meeting, Fidan said Türkiye was working closely with neighboring countries and international organizations to achieve a “permanent and just solution” to the Rohingya issue.
“We are acting in solidarity and coordination with relevant neighboring countries and organizations to find a lasting and fair solution to the Rohingya issue,” Fidan noted.
“As Türkiye, we are making intensive efforts to keep this crisis on the agenda of the international community.”
More than 1 million Rohingya refugees, most of whom fled violence and persecution in neighboring Myanmar, are currently living in camps in Bangladesh, primarily in the southeastern district of Cox’s Bazar.
Fidan praised Bangladesh for hosting the refugees for years, describing the country’s efforts as a “historic sacrifice on behalf of humanity.”
He said Türkiye would continue providing humanitarian assistance while supporting the safe, voluntary and dignified return of Rohingya refugees to their homeland.
The Turkish foreign minister’s remarks came during his first official visit to Bangladesh, where he held talks on bilateral ties, regional security and economic cooperation.
Fidan congratulated Rahman on his election as president of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly, saying the outcome reflected the international community’s confidence in Bangladesh and its growing role on the global stage.
“The result is a very important indication of the respect the international community has for Bangladesh,” Fidan said.
The two ministers also discussed expanding trade and investment between the countries. Bilateral trade currently stands at approximately $1.3 billion, and both sides expressed a desire to increase that figure to $2 billion.
Fidan said Türkiye and Bangladesh were committed to deepening cooperation across a broad range of sectors, including defense, energy, education, culture, science and health care.
During the visit, Türkiye and Bangladesh signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in the protection of cultural heritage. Fidan stressed that the agreement reflected both countries’ commitment to preserving humanity’s shared cultural legacy.
For his part, Rahman described Türkiye as an important strategic partner and thanked Ankara for supporting Bangladesh’s candidacy for the presidency of the U.N. General Assembly.
“Türkiye is an extremely important partner. It was one of the key countries supporting Bangladesh’s candidacy for the presidency of the U.N. General Assembly,” Rahman said.
He also expressed appreciation for Türkiye’s longstanding support during the Rohingya crisis, highlighting Ankara’s humanitarian assistance and diplomatic efforts since the beginning of the refugee influx.
Rahman noted that Fidan would visit Rohingya refugee camps during his trip and said the Turkish-run field hospital in Cox’s Bazar had become one of the most important support mechanisms for refugees and local communities.
The Bangladeshi minister added that Türkiye had contributed not only through humanitarian aid but also through regional and international diplomatic initiatives aimed at resolving the crisis.
Both ministers emphasized the importance of strengthening bilateral cooperation and working together to promote stability, prosperity and security across South Asia amid growing regional and global challenges.
Türkiye remains committed to its environmental and climate goals on the path toward achieving net-zero emissions by 2053, Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change Minister Murat Kurum said Friday on the occasion of World Environment Day.
In a video message shared on social media to mark June 5 World Environment Day and Türkiye Environment Week, Kurum said protecting natural resources is both a national responsibility and a moral obligation toward future generations.
“The soil, air and water do not belong only to the people of today,” Kurum said. “We have inherited them from future generations. Protecting this trust is our responsibility as a state, our shared value as a nation and our most conscientious duty as human beings.”
Kurum highlighted a series of environmental initiatives undertaken under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, including the expansion of protected natural areas, the development of public parks known as “nation gardens” and efforts to increase the number of Blue Flag-certified beaches along Türkiye’s coastlines.
He also pointed to the Zero Waste Movement, launched under the patronage of first lady Emine Erdoğan, as a key environmental campaign that has gained international recognition.
“On the road to our 2053 Net Zero Emissions goal, Türkiye continues its determined march in the field of environment and climate,” Kurum said.
The minister emphasized that Türkiye seeks not only to implement environmental policies domestically but also to share its experience and vision with the international community.
Kurum underlined that the country views its hosting of the U.N. Climate Change Conference, COP31, in Antalya in November 2026 as an opportunity to showcase its environmental achievements and climate commitments on the global stage.
“Türkiye will not come to this major gathering empty-handed,” he said. “We will present not only words but also strong examples that have already been implemented in practice.”
Calling for collective action to protect the environment, Kurum said safeguarding water resources, soil and nature was essential for ensuring a sustainable future.
“If nature falls silent one day, all the words of humanity will remain unfinished,” he stressed.
Türkiye plans to unveil a new national artificial intelligence vision and action plan on June 13, Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz said Friday, outlining the country’s ambitions to strengthen its position in the rapidly evolving field of AI.
Speaking at the “AI Tomorrow Summit 2026” in Istanbul, Yılmaz said the new road map would be announced by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and would focus on developing human capital, high-performance computing infrastructure, data ecosystems, sector-specific applications and governance mechanisms.
“We consider artificial intelligence not merely as a technological tool but as one of the fundamental components of our development and competitiveness policies,” Yılmaz said during a session titled “Artificial Intelligence in the Century of Türkiye: Strategy and Vision.”
The summit, organized by the Artificial Intelligence Policies Association (AIPA), brought together leading AI experts, government officials, academics, entrepreneurs and technology executives.
Yılmaz said Türkiye had made notable progress since the launch of its first National Artificial Intelligence Strategy covering the 2021-2025 period.
According to the vice president, Türkiye ranked 44th in global AI indices in 2021, the year the strategy was introduced, but rose to 34th place by the end of 2024.
“This demonstrates that Türkiye has gained significant momentum, but we believe we must reach an even better position,” he said.
Yılmaz said the new strategy would address emerging global trends such as agentic artificial intelligence systems, sovereign AI approaches, data sovereignty and next-generation model architectures.
He also emphasized the importance of strengthening institutional structures to support AI-driven transformation.
As part of those efforts, Türkiye has established the Directorate General for National Technology and Artificial Intelligence within the Ministry of Industry and Technology, as well as the Directorate General for Public Artificial Intelligence under the Presidency of Cybersecurity.
Yılmaz underlined that the government attaches strategic importance to ensuring that Turkish is strongly represented in AI systems and large language models.
“We see the strong representation of Turkish in artificial intelligence models as a strategic issue,” he said. “For this reason, we attach great importance to Turkish large language model initiatives.”
He added Türkiye aims to support the development of domestic AI solutions trained on local data and tailored to national needs, particularly in strategic sectors.
The government is promoting AI applications across a wide range of fields, including health care, finance, education and telecommunications, with the goal of increasing both economic productivity and social benefits.
Yılmaz said strengthening research and development capacity would remain a priority as Türkiye seeks to advance its National Technology Initiative and position itself as a more competitive player in the global AI landscape.
He expressed hope that the summit would foster new ideas and partnerships that contribute to the country’s long-term artificial intelligence goals.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Thursday reaffirmed Türkiye’s commitment to strengthening ties with African nations on the basis of equal partnership, mutual respect and shared gains, while pledging expanded cooperation with Niger in security, defense, trade, education and development.
“Türkiye views its engagement with Africa as a long-term partnership extending beyond economic relations,” Erdoğan said during a joint press conference with Nigerien President Abdourahamane Tchiani in Ankara.
“We continue to develop our relations with African countries on the basis of equal partnership, mutual respect and win-win principles,” Erdoğan said, adding that cooperation spans a broad range of fields, including security, education, culture and transportation.
The president emphasized Türkiye’s support for countries in Africa’s Sahel region in their fight against terrorist groups, noting that Ankara is prepared to share its expertise with Niger in military training and intelligence cooperation.
Erdoğan said discussions with Tchiani focused on defense industries, security, energy, mining, trade, investment, education, health care and agriculture. The two sides also reviewed investment opportunities in Niger and agreed to deepen economic cooperation.
Several agreements were signed following the talks, including accords on higher education, diplomacy training, health care cooperation and the establishment of a Joint Economic and Trade Commission (JETCO).
Highlighting Türkiye’s development efforts in Niger, Erdoğan pointed to the Türkiye-Niger Friendship Hospital and projects carried out by the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) in irrigation, agriculture, livestock and infrastructure development.
He also praised educational cooperation between the two countries, noting that the Turkish Maarif Foundation currently educates more than 1,700 students in 12 schools in Niger, while nearly 500 Nigerien students, including around 300 scholarship recipients, are pursuing higher education in Türkiye.
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