Politics
Rutte says Türkiye has one of alliance’s strongest armies
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte praised Türkiye’s strategic importance to the alliance on Monday, highlighting its military capabilities, defense industry and geographic position ahead of this week’s NATO leaders’ summit in Ankara.
Speaking at a news conference in the Turkish capital, Rutte said hosting the summit in Ankara reflected Türkiye’s central role within the alliance.
“Your leadership in NATO is important. Your place on the map is important. Holding the summit here in Ankara is very important,” he said.
Rutte described Türkiye as one of NATO’s key contributors to collective defense, pointing to its armed forces and expanding defense industrial base.
“Türkiye plays a very important role in defense. It has one of NATO’s best armed forces,” he said.
He also praised the country’s defense industry, saying it had made significant progress over the past decade and now plays an important role in supplying capabilities needed by the alliance.
“There are thousands of companies in Türkiye producing everything NATO needs,” Rutte said.
He said Türkiye’s strategic location at the crossroads of Europe, the Black Sea and the Middle East further strengthens its value to the alliance.
“Ankara, Istanbul and Türkiye as a whole are very important. Your location on the map, your geographical position and your leadership are all important,” he said.
Rutte added that Türkiye’s role extends beyond geography, emphasizing its growing defense production capacity and long-standing contributions to NATO operations.
He reiterated that the alliance values Türkiye as the host of this year’s summit, which brings together leaders from NATO’s 32 member states to discuss defense spending, transatlantic security, support for Ukraine and other key security challenges.
“We are very pleased that Türkiye is hosting this summit,” Rutte said, calling the country an indispensable ally for NATO’s future security.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump could help ease differences within NATO as alliance leaders gather in Ankara this week for a summit focused on security, defense spending and transatlantic cooperation.
In an interview with The New York Times ahead of the July 7-8 NATO summit, Fidan said Türkiye hopes to use the close ties between Erdoğan and Trump to promote unity within the alliance.
“The relationship between President Erdoğan and President Trump can help reduce tensions within NATO,” Fidan noted, describing the relationship as one based on mutual trust and friendship.
He said Türkiye intends to use that relationship “for a greater good and for the benefit of the entire NATO family.”
Addressing Trump’s past criticism of NATO, Fidan said he expected technical discussions at the Ankara summit to proceed smoothly despite political disagreements.
“I don’t see any problems in that regard,” he remarked, adding that although allies often exchange strong rhetoric, little has changed in practical terms.
Fidan also stressed that Türkiye shares a common understanding with its European allies on NATO’s importance, saying the alliance remains indispensable to European security.
“No one is questioning NATO’s necessity,” he said.
While noting that the European Union is expanding defense cooperation, Fidan argued that such efforts should complement rather than replace NATO. He said Türkiye and European countries should continue to view one another as essential partners in their collective security.
“We are also part of Europe,” Fidan said. “Unless we come together in Europe and build our common security platform, we will never feel sufficiently secure.”
On regional issues, Fidan welcomed recent diplomatic progress between the United States and Iran, saying both sides appeared committed to reaching their long-term objectives, while noting that key issues including Iran’s nuclear program, sanctions relief and navigation through the Strait of Hormuz remain subject to further negotiations.
Fidan also reiterated Türkiye’s readiness to host new peace talks between Russia and Ukraine but said he did not expect negotiations to resume in the near term, emphasizing that meaningful progress would require continued U.S. involvement and a genuine commitment to peace from both sides.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy landed in Ankara Tuesday to attend the two-day summit of NATO, where the Russia-Ukraine war will be a high-priority item on the agenda.
The Ukrainian leader renewed calls for additional Western military assistance, particularly air defense systems capable of intercepting ballistic missiles, saying Ukraine urgently needs more interceptor missiles, after the conflict escalated in recent weeks.
“We very much expect that the summit now in Ankara – the summit of the strongest Euro-Atlantic states – will not become a hollow exercise. And that our protection of life, our security cooperation, and defense capabilities here in Europe and with America will become stronger through joint work and joint decisions,” Zelenskyy said in a televised address Monday. “Decisions are needed,” Zelenskyy added.
He urged the U.S. and European countries to emerge from the 2026 NATO summit with “strong decisions” in support of Ukraine’s air defenses and the protection of civilians.
Earlier Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump said that a resolution to the more than four-year-old war in Ukraine is “getting closer than people realize” and that he will talk about Ukraine during talks in Türkiye.
Trump made his remarks after speaking over the weekend with both Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Zelenskyy.
He gave no specific reason for his assertion that a solution to the conflict was in sight and overnight Russia hammered Kyiv and the surrounding region with missiles and drones, killing at least 28 people.
In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he believed the U.S. position on how to resolve the conflict remained unchanged.
But Zelenskyy, interviewed by the Financial Times, said he believed the U.S. president was viewing the conflict in a new light in view of recent Ukrainian successes.
“This is one that I think we’re getting much closer than people realize. And President Putin wants it to end. I will tell you that very strongly,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.
Trump said he had held a “good call” with Putin on the Fourth of July holiday, a conversation a Kremlin aide said lasted 85 minutes and was marked by the U.S. president offering to help find a way to move towards peace.
“And President Zelenskiy actually wants it to end now. And we’re going to be going to NATO, and we’re going to be talking about it, and I think we’re going to get it,” he said. “I think we’re going to get it ended. It’s been a terrible situation.”
Trump is scheduled to meet Zelenskyy on Wednesday on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara and a U.S. official said the idea of the talks was to make a renewed push to end the war.
The same official said Trump would likely follow up with Putin after talking to Zelenskyy.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Tuesday welcomed Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to the Presidential Complex. Carney was among heads of state and governments who arrived in Ankara for a two-day NATO summit.
Turkish Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek greeted Carney at the airport before the Canadian leader headed to the complex where other top officials, including U.S. President Donald Trump, will visit later on Tuesday.
Canada is among the countries joining an initiative announced by NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte on Tuesday to acquire, store, transport and manage stockpiles of critical defense materials.
The country announced earlier this year that it achieved NATO’s defense spending commitment based on gross domestic product (GDP). Canada heavily invested in infrastructure and rolled out procurement decisions as well, including new submarines.
Türkiye has always been a top contributor to NATO, but the alliance’s fate was often shaped by other members. This changed in the past few decades as Türkiye’s leverage in the bloc grew under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. This week, Türkiye will likely get what it wants from the alliance as it brings together heads of state and government for what pundits call the “most important summit” of the alliance.
This week’s summit will be an opportunity for Türkiye to showcase its flourishing defense industry and seek more collaboration in this field with NATO members. It will also be an opportunity for Türkiye to enhance cooperation with EU states, most of whom are also NATO members, in bolstering the defenses of the continent.
Türkiye brought many of the challenges NATO faces today onto the Alliance’s agenda over the past five years, achieving concrete outcomes despite criticism from some member states. By insisting that Sweden and Finland take meaningful steps in combating terrorism before approving their NATO membership, Türkiye initially withheld its consent. Once the two countries implemented tangible measures in this area, Türkiye lifted its objections.
Although some allies opposed Türkiye’s stance at the time, Ankara succeeded in incorporating its priority issues into NATO summit declarations, securing what it viewed as a diplomatic victory. In hindsight, this also served as an early warning regarding the challenges that NATO members are confronting today.
Over the past five years, Ankara consistently emphasized at NATO summits that allies should not impose sanctions or defense industry restrictions on one another. While many allies, particularly in Europe, did not initially recognize the significance of this issue, developments and messages from the United States have since made defense industrial cooperation one of NATO’s foremost priorities. Türkiye also became one of the most closely watched countries at NATO summits due to its diplomatic efforts, public messaging, and mediation role aimed at ending the war between Russia and Ukraine.
Despite maintaining close relations with many allies, President Erdoğan consistently raised the issue of what he described as Israel’s atrocities at NATO summits, just as he has at other international forums. As a result, various actors, particularly pro-Israel lobbying groups, campaigned for Türkiye’s exclusion from NATO. However, Türkiye ultimately secured the right to host the 2026 NATO Summit in Ankara, presenting this as its response to those opposing its role.
2021 summit
The 2021 Brussels Summit marked the first face-to-face meeting between then-U.S. President Joe Biden and President Erdoğan, with an extensive agenda covering both regional and bilateral issues. Alongside developments in Syria, Afghanistan, and Libya, the leaders also discussed bilateral relations. This was the last NATO summit before the outbreak of the Russia–Ukraine War. Despite rising tensions, dialogue remained the preferred approach. As Türkiye’s influence within NATO continued to grow, Ankara conveyed the message that “while protecting our own borders, we are also protecting NATO’s borders.” Today, NATO leaders frequently emphasize this point when discussing Türkiye.
2022 summit
Following the outbreak of the Russia–Ukraine conflict in February 2022, Sweden and Finland formally applied for NATO membership. At the time, members of the terrorist groups PKK and Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) were active in Sweden. Türkiye declared that if Sweden and Finland wished to join NATO, they first needed to take concrete steps in combating terrorism, and therefore initially withheld its approval for their accession.
As a result, attention at the summit focused on the messages President Erdoğan would deliver on the issue. Negotiations took place during the summit, culminating in the signing of a trilateral memorandum with Sweden and Finland that outlined a roadmap for their eventual admission into NATO. Türkiye emphasized that it expected concrete actions from both countries before ratifying their membership, and approval was ultimately granted after the necessary legislative and policy measures had been implemented.
2023 summit
At the Vilnius Summit, NATO agreed, at Turkey’s request, to establish the position of Special Coordinator for counterterrorism. Owing in part to host Lithuania’s geographical proximity to the conflict, the Russia–Ukraine conflict dominated the summit agenda.
Türkiye’s role in facilitating initiatives such as the Black Sea Grain Initiative and prisoner exchanges, as well as its broader mediation efforts, made it one of the countries with the deepest involvement in the diplomatic process. Consequently, international media closely followed President Erdoğan’s remarks, with journalists lining up outside the venue of his post-summit press conference.
The summit also reaffirmed Türkiye’s long-standing position that NATO allies should refrain from imposing either overt or covert arms embargoes or sanctions against one another.
2024 summit
As Türkiye’s influence within NATO continued to expand, President Erdoğan held numerous bilateral meetings with world leaders during the summit in Washington D.C., presenting the “Turkish vision.”
It was at this summit that the decision was made for Türkiye to host the 2026 NATO Summit. While in Washington, Erdoğan once again strongly criticized what he described as Israel’s violations of international law.
The summit also updated NATO’s strategy document on counterterrorism. Additionally, the Alliance reaffirmed the Vilnius decision supporting Türkiye’s priority that allies should not impose sanctions on one another.
Following Erdoğan’s announcement that Türkiye would veto Israel’s participation in certain NATO activities open to non-member partners, pro-Israel lobbying groups intensified efforts to reduce Türkiye’s influence within the Alliance.
2025 summit
At the 2025 Hague Summit, many allies moved closer to Türkiye’s position on assuming greater responsibility in addressing emerging threats and security challenges.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte highlighted closer defense industrial cooperation by stating, “From Texas to Ankara,” signaling that the Alliance increasingly shared Ankara’s perspective on this issue.
President Erdoğan emphasized “diplomacy for peace” in Ukraine and “justice for Gaza.” Although the U.S.–Iran conflict had not yet begun at that time, President Erdoğan also stated that “a lasting solution to issues with Iran is only possible through diplomacy and negotiation,” an evidence of Türkiye’s accurate assessment of regional developments.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte arrived in Ankara on Monday before the alliance’s July 7-8 leaders’ summit, where heads of state and government from the 32-member bloc are set to meet.
In a video message released by NATO ahead of the summit, Rutte noted alliance officials were traveling to the Turkish capital as preparations entered their final stage.
“Many people in this building are now moving to Ankara,” Rutte said. “Tomorrow and the day after tomorrow we will hold a summit there.”
He stressed the gathering of NATO leaders would center on translating political commitments into concrete action.
“The summit will largely be about delivering on our commitments,” Rutte said. “We achieved a great deal in The Hague last year, but now we have to implement what was agreed there.”
Rutte said allies would discuss credible defense spending plans and review progress toward NATO’s target of allocating 5% of gross domestic product to defense and related security investments.
“We need to make sure that all countries are on track toward reaching the 5% target,” he said, adding that recent developments offered “really good news” for the alliance.
He also stressed the importance of expanding defense industrial production to strengthen NATO’s military readiness and ensure allies can meet future security challenges.
Rutte said continued military support for Ukraine would remain a priority, arguing that Kyiv should have the resources needed to defend itself and be in the strongest possible position if peace negotiations begin.
“We must ensure that Ukraine has everything it needs to remain as strong as possible in its fight and, of course, to be in the best possible position when peace negotiations start,” he said.
Türkiye will host the July 7-8 NATO summit in Ankara, where leaders of all 32 member states, including U.S. President Donald Trump, are expected to discuss the alliance’s future, defense investment, transatlantic security and support for Ukraine.
NATO Military Committee Chair Adm. Giuseppe Cavo Dragone described Türkiye as a strong and strategic ally ahead of this week’s NATO leaders’ summit in Ankara, praising its military capabilities, defense industry and geopolitical position as central to the alliance’s security.
Speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA) at NATO headquarters in Brussels before the July 7-8 summit, Cavo Dragone said the alliance has become stronger since he assumed the Military Committee’s top post in January 2025.
“When I took office, I believed NATO was a strong and healthy alliance. After a year and a half, I can confirm that assessment,” he said. “We are no longer just waking up. We are on our feet and moving forward.”
Drawing attention to Türkiye’s role within NATO, the admiral said the country occupies a unique strategic position linking the Black Sea, the Mediterranean and the Middle East while maintaining the alliance’s second-largest military.
He also praised Türkiye’s rapidly expanding defense industry after recently visiting several production facilities.
“I was truly impressed,” Cavo Dragone said. “Türkiye is already a strong ally and, in my assessment, it will become even stronger in the future.”
He said Türkiye could serve as a model for other allies because of its investment in defense manufacturing, production speed and delivery capacity.
“Geographically, Türkiye may be on NATO’s frontier, but in many strategic respects it is at the center of the alliance,” he said. “We trust Türkiye and are pleased to have it as our ally.”
Cavo Dragone added that Türkiye’s security concerns should continue to be addressed within the alliance on the basis of mutual trust, calling unity among allies NATO’s greatest strategic strength.
He also noted that allies have become increasingly aware of the evolving security environment and are now expected to turn political commitments into concrete action. Referring to defense spending pledges made at last year’s NATO summit in The Hague, Cavo Dragone said implementation would be the alliance’s main priority.
“Declarations are easy. What matters from a military perspective is achieving tangible results on the ground,” he said, adding that NATO also needs to maintain its long-term commitment to supporting Ukraine and preserve momentum in defense industrial production.
Cavo Dragone acknowledged that differences among NATO’s 32 democratic members can slow decision-making but argued that consensus-building ultimately strengthens the alliance.
“Different views are natural. They help us discuss, negotiate, and reach common ground,” he said, stressing that mutual trust remains NATO’s greatest asset.
Addressing concerns over a possible reduction in U.S. military contributions to Europe, Cavo Dragone said European allies are capable of assuming greater responsibility for their own defense, although the transition will require time and sustained investment.
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