Turkey wants to see world free of nuclear weapons: FM

By Bayram Altug

GENEVA (AA) - Turkey’s ultimate goal is to see a world free of nuclear weapons, the country’s foreign minister said on Monday.

Mevlut Cavusoglu's remarks came at the UN's Disarmament Conference held in Geneva, Switzerland.

"Disarmament, proliferation of nuclear weapons and weapon control is of critical importance for global security and peace," Cavusoglu said, adding that Turkey faced numerous risk and threats in its region.

He noted that Turkey was simultaneously fighting several terror groups -- such as Daesh, PKK/PYD and FETO -- while the civil war in Syria has almost entered its 9th year.

The foreign minister underlined the conference was a unique platform to discuss the issue of weapons of mass destruction.

He emphasized that a world without nuclear weapons could only be achieved by implementing the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) in a successive and universal manner.

He also called on the attendees to hold an international conference on the "weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East".