Turkish Chief of General Staff General Selcuk Bayraktaroglu met US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine in the capital Ankara on the sidelines of a NATO summit.

Bayraktaroglu welcomed Caine with an official ceremony at the Turkish General Staff headquarters.

Following the playing of the national anthems of Türkiye and the US, Caine inspected the honour guard.

After the ceremony, Bayraktaroglu and Caine held closed-door talks.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed confidence that NATO’s summit in Türkiye will project “strength and unity” at a time of global tensions and conflicts.

“The NATO summit in Ankara is taking place in turbulent times, and in these times we need a strong and united NATO as a guarantor of our freedom and security,” Merz told reporters at Berlin’s airport before departing for Ankara.

Merz said European allies are prepared to shoulder more responsibility within the alliance by boosting defence spending and enhancing military capabilities, thereby strengthening the European pillar of NATO.

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson welcomed NATO's decision to select the Saab GlobalEye as the alliance's next airborne early warning and control (AWACS) system.

During a joint news conference with Defence Minister Pal Jonson and Saab President and CEO Micael Johansson on the sidelines of the NATO summit, Kristersson said the military alliance has announced plans to begin negotiations with Swedish defence company Saab for the potential acquisition of up to 10 aircraft.

Türkiye signed agreements under the 2026 NATO Defence Industry Forum on several strategic capability areas to be developed jointly by member states, the head of the country’s Defence Industries Secretariat said.

Haluk Gorgun said on Turkish social media platform NSosyal that the agreements cover strike capabilities, integrated air and missile defence systems, space and surveillance capabilities, critical raw materials for the defence industry, and NATO’s unmanned aerial vehicle superiority.

“These projects, which will include Aselsan, Roketsan, STM and the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TUBITAK), will form the backbone of the alliance's deterrence architecture in the coming years,” Gorgun said.

Turkish Air Force Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) aircraft will conduct 11 sorties over a 60-hour period to help secure the NATO Summit in Ankara, playing a key role in monitoring Turkish airspace.

Stationed at the 3rd Main Jet Base Command in Konya, the E-7T aircraft, known in Türkiye as the “Peace Eagle,” are equipped with multifunctional electronically scanned air and maritime radar capable of providing 360-degree surveillance and identifying multiple targets at ranges of up to 400 kilometres.

The aircraft transmits detected targets in real time to ground operations centres, as well as to aircraft and naval units operating in the field, enabling coordinated air defence operations.

Türkiye's Defence Minister Yasar Guler held separate meetings with Japanese Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and Charles Woodburn, chief executive of BAE Systems, ahead of the 36th NATO summit in Ankara.

Guler met Koizumi at the ATO Congresium, where leaders and senior officials are gathering for the summit. He also received Woodburn as defence industry executives convened alongside the alliance's annual meeting.

Türkiye's National Defence Ministry did not disclose details of the discussions.

Australian Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said that Türkiye's expanding defence industry and increased government investment are creating new opportunities for cooperation between the two NATO allies.

"I think there are great opportunities for cooperation in the defence industry as well. The Turkish defence industry is growing. The Turkish government's putting lots of investment in there, and we're always open to working with NATO partners," Conroy told Anadolu on the sidelines of the NATO Defence Industry Forum (NSDIF26), held alongside the first day of the 36th NATO Heads of State and Government Summit in Ankara.

Conroy praised Türkiye for hosting both the NATO Leaders' Summit and the defence industry forum, saying the parallel events come at a crucial moment for the alliance.

Russia will closely follow the outcome of NATO's summit in Türkiye, the Kremlin said, adding that "confrontational" statements about Russia had been made in the run-up to the meeting.

NATO leaders plan to unveil arms deals worth tens of billions of dollars in Ankara to show they are heeding US calls to spend more to defend Europe, before joining President Donald Trump for the summit.

Belgium has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening bilateral defence cooperation with Türkiye, with Defence Minister Theo Francken describing the two countries as "close allies" whose partnership "is strong and will become even stronger."

Francken met Turkish National Defence Minister Yasar Guler at the NATO Defence Industry Forum in Ankara, emphasising the importance of expanding cooperation as NATO allies work to enhance Europe's defence capabilities and industrial capacity.

"A pleasure to meet Turkish Defence Minister Yaşar Güler at the NATO Summit in Ankara. Belgium and Türkiye are close allies. Our defence partnership is strong and will become even stronger," he wrote on X.

A panel titled Why Narva Is Not Next: Examining Assumptions About Baltic Vulnerability was held as part of the “Allies in Ankara” programme, organised in cooperation with Türkiye’s Communications Directorate, the Munich Security Conference (MSC), and the Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA), within the framework of the 36th NATO summit.

The panel, moderated by the Baltic International Centre for Security Policy, took place at Ankara Palas.

Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braze, Lithuania’s Permanent Representative to NATO Darius Jauniskis, and Martin Roger, political director at the Estonian Foreign Ministry, attended as speakers.

NATO allies will invest more than $40 billion in the next five years in their capabilities to defend against drones, Secretary General Mark Rutte said.

He also said that NATO allies are committed to work together to acquire, store, transport and manage stockpiles of critical defence materials.

At a defence industry forum in Ankara, Rutte said the initiative involves Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and Türkiye.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met his Finnish counterpart Alexander Stubb in the capital, Ankara.

The closed-door meeting at the presidential complex came as the two-day NATO summit kicked off.

Later on Tuesday, Stubb will attend a dinner hosted by Erdogan and first lady Emine Erdogan in honour of the heads of state and government, and their spouses.

Türkiye has been a NATO member since 1952, making it one of the alliance’s longest-standing members and a key ally due to its geography, military strength, and role in regional security.

TRT World’s Bera Karaman explains how it has transformed its defence industry over the past two decades.

NATO foreign ministers will meet Gulf Arab counterparts on Tuesday to address the stalemate over reopening the Strait of Hormuz, including a Franco-British proposal for a multinational maritime mission that Iran has so far dismissed.

The meeting on the sidelines of a 2026 NATO summit in Ankara will bring together ministers from Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates following weeks of tensions in the strategically important waterway despite an interim US-Iran peace deal.

NATO members are preparing to pledge €140 billion ($160 billion) in support for Ukraine this year and the next, Germany’s foreign minister said, describing the planned commitment as a signal to Moscow that Kiev’s backers are not wavering.

“We can commit 140 billion euros to Ukraine for 2026 and next year, drawn solely from European and Canadian contributions,” Johann Wadephul told Deutschlandfunk radio, ahead of NATO’s Ankara summit. “This will be a very strong signal of support to Ukraine.”

Wadephul said recent developments on the battlefield showed the war had entered a phase in which Ukraine is able to strike Russia more heavily, adding that this demonstrated Western support was having an impact. He said pressure needs to be further increased on Russia to push it to return to the negotiating table.

“Europe is ready to engage in negotiations – as Chancellor Merz made clear in London together with Emmanuel Macron and Keir Starmer,” Wadephul said, referring to the talks between German, French, and UK leaders in London last month.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Ankara to attend the 2026 NATO summit.

Zelenskyy's aircraft landed at the Esenboga Airport, where he was welcomed by Turkish Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy and other officials.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney for talks in the capital, Ankara.

The closed-door meeting at the presidential complex came as the two-day NATO summit kicked off.

This is the first visit by a Canadian premier to Türkiye in 11 years.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has announced three new defence initiatives as the alliance opened its 2026 summit with a defence industry forum focused on boosting joint procurement and industrial cooperation

Speaking at the NATO Defense Industry Forum, the first official event of the two-day summit in Ankara, Rutte unveiled projects aimed at expanding allied capabilities in airlift, intelligence and surveillance.

The first initiative is a multinational modernisation programme centred on the Airbus A400M transport aircraft and the Airbus A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) fleet.

He also announced a joint procurement project for MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft to enhance the alliance's intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities.

Rutte's third announcement focused on replacing NATO's ageing Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) fleet.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said that the NATO summit in Ankara will help shape the alliance's future and adapt its structures to an increasingly complex security environment.

As the two-day summit gets underway, Fidan said in a post on X that Türkiye is prepared to host NATO allies under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

"The stage is set in Ankara. Under President Erdogan's leadership, Türkiye stands ready to welcome NATO members at a moment that will define the Alliance's future," Fidan said.

Türkiye welcomes the growing commitment among NATO allies to increase defence spending, but higher budgets must be translated into concrete military capabilities, trained personnel and resilient defence industries, the country's National Defence Minister Yasar Guler said.

Speaking at the NATO Allies in Ankara event, hosted in cooperation with the Communications Directorate, the Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA), and the Munich Security Conference, Guler said 'increasing defence spending is important, yet spending money alone does not produce deterrence.”

He stressed that NATO’s credibility will depend on whether allies can turn political commitments into ready forces, ammunition, logistics, integrated air and missile defence, command-and-control structures and industrial capacity.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has arrived in Ankara to attend the 36th NATO summit.

Carney's aircraft landed at Ankara's Esenboga Airport, where he was welcomed by Turkish Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek and other officials.

During his visit, Carney is also scheduled to hold talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the presidential complex.

The NATO summit in Ankara marks another turning point in the alliance's historical evolution, Turkish Head of Communications Burhanettin Duran has said, urging allies to rethink collective defence against increasingly complex threats.

Speaking at the "NATO Allies in Ankara" event, Duran said defence spending alone was insufficient, stressing the need for coherent policies and a shared understanding of how military and non-military tools should work together.

NATO leaders gather in the Turkish capital, Ankara, for a pivotal summit focused on strengthening allied cohesion and transforming political pledges on defence spending and military capability development into measurable action, Estonia's Defence Ministry has said in comments to Anadolu.

The meeting is widely expected to be framed as a potential "summit of delivery," with a central focus on ensuring that allies meet agreed defence spending benchmarks and NATO capability targets.

The discussions come as member states seek to demonstrate that increased European and Canadian contributions are translating into real military capacity, industrial output and deterrence.

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung has departed for Türkiye to attend the NATO summit in Ankara, local media reported.

Lee's visit to Türkiye is part of a two-country tour that will continue with a stop in Mongolia, said Yonhap News Agency.

The presidential aircraft carrying Lee took off from Seoul Air Base in Seongnam en route to Ankara, where the leaders of NATO's 32 member countries, including US President Donald Trump, will gather for the summit from Tuesday to Wednesday.

The move follows weeks of behind-the-scenes efforts by national security officials to break the stalemate, the New York Times reports.