US President Donald Trump has arrived in Ankara for NATO’s annual summit, kicking the meeting off with a show of friendship for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and threats of US military withdrawal for the bloc’s European members.
Trump touched down in Türkiye on Tuesday, at a time of heightened acrimony between Washington and the Europeans. Trump has pushed his NATO allies to hike defense spending to 5% of GDP, a figure agreed upon at last year’s summit, but one increasingly difficult to meet as European economies stagnate.
The US president told reporters that he is “very disappointed with NATO” for not meeting this target and backing the US-Israeli war on Iran, and suggested that he could announce further drawdowns of US forces in Europe in response.
Trump said that he only decided to travel to the summit out of respect for Erdogan, who he hailed as “a very strong leader.” Despite Erdogan’s condemnation of the war on Iran and the growing tensions between Türkiye and Israel, Trump announced that he would lift sanctions on Ankara over Erdogan’s purchase of the Russian S-400 air defense system, and would consider reversing his ban on selling F-35 fighter jets to Türkiye – a move that would likely anger Israel.
Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky has used the summit to ask for more weapons from his EU backers, this time anti-air systems capable of intercepting Russian ballistic missiles. One day earlier, the Russian military launched a combined missile and drone assault on Kiev, destroying weapons factories and other military infrastructure.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, who infamously referred to Trump as “daddy” during last year’s meeting in The Hague, is using the Ankara summit as an opportunity to prove his value to Trump.
“President Trump fully expects that all allies will step up immediately and get on the path to 5% and do it with urgency,” he said on Monday, telling reporters that he plans to flatter the US president by bringing up “the Trump trillion” – his term for the trillion dollars that Canada and NATO’s European members have spent cumulatively on defense since Trump’s first term in office began in 2017.
07 July 2026
As NATO leaders attend dinner, we’re wrapping up our live updates from Ankara for the day. Stick with RT for all the latest news and analysis from the second and final day of the summit tomorrow.
Despite Trump’s gripes, NATO’s European members and Canada have ramped up military spending to record heights. According to the bloc’s figures, defense spending by the Canadians and Europeans is projected to rise by just under 11% this year to $634 billion, after a 19% increase in 2025.
The US is still NATO’s dominant military spender, however, with a 2026 military budget of $850 billion.
The Netherlands and the UK have signed a $3.2 billion maritime deal to develop amphibious transport ships, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer just announced in a statement. With each nation agreeing to build just four ships, it’s a small victory for Starmer, who is expected to leave office this autumn.
The pomp continues as Trump arrives for dinner with NATO leaders. The president flashes a quick thumbs up to reporters before heading inside to dine with Erdogan and his wife, Emine. The formal dinner caps off the first day of the summit.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen arrived in Ankara bragging about the €800 billion ($913 billion) the EU intends to spend on rearmament by 2030, the €150 billion in debt-financed defense loans for member states, and the €4 billion handed over to Ukraine for drone procurement earlier this month.
Trump didn’t appear to be impressed. “Europe better be careful with immigration and energy. If they are not careful with those two things you’re not going to have a Europe anymore,” he told reporters.
Zelensky’s also taking the opportunity to pitch Ukraine – which is entirely dependent on foreign aid and a forcibly conscripted military – as a potential NATO member. “That would make all of us stronger,” he says, adding that “it would be only natural to become a part of one common security community.”
Unlike at previous summits, few analysts or observers are expecting any commitments from the bloc to Kiev, beyond its current position that Ukraine “will become a member of NATO” at an unspecified point in the future.
Russia considers Ukraine joining NATO to be a red line and an unacceptable security risk.
On the sidelines of the summit, Zelensky is extracting whatever pledges of weapons and weapons he can from his European backers. The Ukrainian leader just announced a $900 million arms package from Canada, and drone production deals with Estonia, Finland, and the Netherlands.
But the real prize is the US-made Patriot air defense system. With existing missile stocks burned up by Ukraine and the US’ Gulf partners during the war on Iran, Zelensky has demanded “more Patriots,” and called on his backers to “support our efforts to make this happen.”
As Trump and Erdogan hold private talks, Britain’s outgoing prime minister, Keir Starmer, touched down for his third and last NATO summit, accompanied by Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper.
There was no red carpet, honor guard, or motorcade escort for Starmer, who had to settle for a handshake with Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavas.
Trump’s tone shifted when it came to the Europeans. “They better be careful,” he warned, claiming that he may “remove all our soldiers out of Europe.”
Greenland, and Denmark’s refusal to sell the territory to the US, is still a sore point for the US president. “That’s what hurt my relationship with NATO,” he said. “Because Greenland doesn’t help Denmark. Denmark doesn’t spend money to really help Greenland, but it’s an important part for the United States…Greenland should be controlled by the United States.”
Aside from his public statements, Netanyahu has privately lobbied Trump against supplying Türkiye with F-35s. In a phone call on Friday, the Israeli PM asked Trump to “rein in the Turkish leader” and force him to “go a little easy” on the topic of the jets, Axios reported, citing US and Israeli officials.
Trump apparently didn’t heed the call, telling reporters “we will consider” supplying the warplanes to Türkiye. Speaking alongside the US president, Erdogan claimed that Trump had “promised five jets.”
“President Trump has always been a man of his word, and hopefully with respect to the F-35 we will have a fruitful outcome and a decision from this leaders summit,” he said.
Welcome to RT’s live coverage of the NATO bloc’s most important yearly meeting. Trump received a lavish welcome and a cavalry escort from Erdogan, and responded by heaping praise upon the Turkish president. Here’s a quick recap of what he said:
“Turkey has been in many ways much more loyal than other countries that we think would be loyal”
“I think it’s been from the very beginning… just a chemistry that works between us’
Trump also shot down Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s attempts to sour relations between the US and Turkiye before the summit began. “They talk openly about conquering Jerusalem…they supported Hamas and did not lift a finger against Iran,” Netanyahu told Fox News on Monday.
“I hear some people saying about their relationship with Israel,” Trump responded. “They could have gotten into the fight on the other side. They didn’t do that. They are a nation that has been very, very good.”