Jakarta. Indonesia recently called for the establishment a treaty aimed at banning the use of nuclear weapons in the Middle East following the heightened conflict between the heavily armed Israel and Iran.

The foreign ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) nations, including Indonesia’s Sugiono, gathered in Istanbul over the weekend as the Israel-Iran war heated up.

Speaking before his Middle Eastern counterparts, Sugiono said that nuclear sites should be off-limits no matter what. Sugiono brought the forum’s attention to the longstanding proposal of establishing a regional nuclear-weapon-free zone.

“Nuclear facilities must never be attacked, regardless of the context or circumstances, as it could harm both people and the environment,” Sugiono said, quoting the International Atomic Energy Agency.

“On this note, Indonesia reiterates support for a Middle East zone free of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction,” he told the conference.

Over the past few decades, the world has seen the establishment of five nuclear-weapon-free zones, including those in Latin America, the South Pacific, and Southeast Asia. Africa and Central Asia have similar treaties that prohibit nuclear weapon use in their regions.

The Southeast Asian bloc of ASEAN has been trying to get nuclear powers such as Russia and the US to ink its legally binding anti-nuke treaty. Talks of establishing similar zones in the Middle East began decades ago, although the discussions have lacked substantial progress.

Iran is a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), in which Tehran had committed to prevent the spread of nuclear technology. Tehran has threatened to walk away from the arms control agreement following Israel’s attack on its nuclear sites.

Iran has asserted that its nuclear program is only for peaceful and civilian purposes. According to media reports, Israel is widely believed to possess nuclear weapons. However, it has neither acknowledged nor denied having a nuclear arsenal. Israel is not a member of the NPT.

The two-day OIC foreign ministerial meeting resulted in a joint declaration, which “condemned firmly” Israel’s attacks against its member Iran. The 33-point document did not mention the establishment of the Middle East nuclear-weapon-free zone.

The same weekend also saw the US inserting itself into the Israel-Iran war, sparking World War III fears. US President Donald Trump claimed that his military had struck three Iranian nuclear sites, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan. The Indonesian government has yet to issue a statement on the US' attack.

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