Turkey

Country Spotlight

Neighbor to multiple current and former proliferators of WMD, Turkey has relied on its NATO membership to guarantee its security. Although Turkey is a non-nuclear weapon state member of the NPT in good standing, Turkey’s president has made occasional public mentions of the country’s right to develop and acquire nuclear weapons.

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Region Middle East and North Africa

~50 U.S. B61 nuclear bombs stored at Incirlik Air Base

30 Countries seeking Turkish-made unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)

280 km Range of Bora-1 short-range ballistic missile

Nuclear

Hosts U.S. nuclear weapons as part of NATO nuclear sharing mission
Calls to remove U.S. nuclear weapons from Incirlik Air Base have increased in recent years
Construction of a Russian-financed nuclear power plant at Akkuyu began in 2018

Biological

Member of the Australia Group which controls exports of chemical and biological technology
No known biological weapons pursuits

Missile

Develops and produces short-range ballistic missiles
Plans to extend the range of its Tayfun ballistic missile from 560 km to 1,000 km
Turkish-made Bayraktar UAVs have been used effectively by the Ukrainian military in the 2022-2023 conflict with Russia
In May of 2025, Turkey entered talks with the US to purchase AMRAAM missile capabilities and infrastructure.

Chemical

No known chemical weapons pursuits
Denies accusations of white phosphorus use during the Syrian Civil War

Treaties and Regimes Memberships

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NPT

The NPT is a treaty aimed at limiting the spread of nuclear weapons through the three pillars of non-proliferation, disarmament, and peaceful use of nuclear energy.

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North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

NATO was founded in 1949 and has 32 Alliance Members. Its member countries are committed to sharing the risks and responsibilities as well as the benefits of collective security.

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Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC)

The Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) requires countries to destroy all chemical weapons and prohibits developing, stockpiling, or using chemical weapons.

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Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT)

The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty bans all nuclear explosion tests on Earth. It needs eight key countries to ratify before entry into force.

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