NATO leaders met Tuesday for the first day of a two-day summit in the Turkish capital Ankara, at which defence spending, Ukraine, and alliance unity topped the agenda.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan welcomed U.S. President Donald Trump to the Presidential Complex, after which the two leaders held one of the summit's most highly anticipated bilateral meetings.
In his first visit to Ankara since returning to office last year, Trump met with his Turkish counterpart behind closed doors to discuss defence cooperation, regional security, and broader strategic ties.
According to Turkish officials, discussions focused on U.S. sanctions imposed on Türkiye under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), Ankara's hope of rejoining a U.S.-led F-35 jet fighter programme, and expanding cooperation in the defence industrial field.
The summit brings together leaders from NATO's 32 member states at a time when the Western alliance is confronting Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine, instability across the Middle East, and mounting pressure to strengthen its collective deterrent capacity.
At a high-profile NATO Defence Industry Forum held alongside the summit, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met NATO chief Mark Rutte, with whom he discussed military assistance to Kyiv, especially in terms of air defences.
Along with Ukraine, the summit’s first day was dominated by the issue of defence spending by allies.
In pre-summit remarks, Rutte urged NATO allies to step up investment in their military capabilities, as leaders seek to achieve a spending target of 5% of GDP on defence and security by 2035.
At the Defence Industry Forum, several multinational initiatives were unveiled to enhance the production of missiles, drones, air defence systems, and other vital military equipment.
The summit’s first day also saw continued debate over inter-alliance burden-sharing, with Trump again urging European allies to increase defence spending and stressing the need for a stronger NATO.
Leaders are set to continue talks on Wednesday before issuing a final declaration laying out NATO’s position on collective defence, defence-industrial cooperation, and continued support for Ukraine.
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