NATO set to unveil billions in arms deals to prove Trump’s firepower

ANKARA, Türkiye — President Donald Trump arrived in Ankara on Tuesday afternoon for the NATO summit, as the transatlantic military alliance announced billions in arms sales to try to appease the American leader.

Trump, who often upended NATO gatherings by complaining that European allies were not spending enough on their own defense, was first scheduled to sit down with Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, a close ally who is hosting this year’s gathering and who warmly welcomed the U.S. president at a local air base.

Earlier today, NATO presented a series of military projects worth billions of dollars – an investment that the alliance’s Secretary General Mark Rutte called “money well spent.” An energetic Rutte was addressing government ministers and defense industry officials at a forum billed as NATO’s “big reveal”, to the sound of techno music and a stunning video display.

NATO as an organization does not own any weapons – these belong to the 32 member countries – but it does have a fleet of 14 AWACS early warning radar surveillance planes that are around 50 years old, as well as some newer surveillance drones.

A deal to replace the aging planes was announced Tuesday. Swedish manufacturer Saab will supply up to 10 new GlobalEye surveillance aircraft to a consortium of 10 countries, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson announced.

“This is a very proud moment,” he said, emphasizing that the twin-engine aircraft would be “made within the alliance for the whole alliance.”

Some projects will be financed with funds from a cheap loan system for defense purposes set up by the European Union, including up to $170 billion raised on capital markets.

“We must ensure that we translate our economic power into military capabilities, putting money to work, from defense plans to drones, from money to missiles and interceptors,” Rutte said.

Trump called NATO a “paper tiger” it would stop working without American weapons and leadership. At Tuesday’s forum, Michael Duffy, US deputy secretary of defense, said that “the reality is we need an increase in production across the board.”

“We will look to increase our exports to those looking to buy our equipment, and we will also look to partner in the expansion of production capacity here in Europe,” he said.

Representatives from 15 countries shook hands and patted shoulders on a vast podium under the NATO logo as they announced a multinational effort to buy air-to-air refueling and transport planes from Airbus.

Rutte then announced a four-nation effort to buy up to five new Triton surveillance drones to add to NATO’s small fleet.

“This is a real NATO initiative that creates jobs on both sides of the Atlantic,” he said.

Rutte told reporters on the eve of the two-day meeting of the military alliance summit in Türkiye that “we will announce tens of billions in new contracts that will provide the crucial kit we need to deter and defend.”

However, at Tuesday’s event no figures were given and the exhibition included some long-agreed projects.

The defense industry boom comes weeks after Rutte tried to assuage US concerns about NATO military spending with a new land using a chart titled “The Trump Trillion” – showing $1.2 trillion in spending from European allies and Canada since 2017.

Trump appeared unfazed, saying he was still disappointed by the refusal of some NATO allies to join NATO. the war in Iranwhich he had launched alongside Israel without consulting them.

“We don’t need their money, we don’t need anything,” Trump said. “I just want loyalty.”

The summit is held at Erdogan the sprawling Ankara palace complex, and Trump suggested he would come bearing gifts for the Turkish leader.

Speaking Monday on the morning show “Fox & Friends,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged the United States not to sell F-35 fighter jets to Turkey, saying Erdogan “openly calls for the annihilation of Israel.”

Turkey and Israel have acrimonious relations. Erdogan frequently accuses Israel of having committed genocide in its war in Gaza, triggered by the deadly attack carried out on October 7, 2023 by Hamas against southern Israel.

Turkey was excluded from the F-35 program in 2019 after purchasing Russian-made planes S-400 missile defense systems. However, Trump, who enjoys warm relations with Erdogan, hinted ahead of his planned visit to Ankara that sales could soon resume.

Netanyahu said the sale of Turkish F-35s “would disrupt the balance of power in the Middle East, which is ultimately guaranteed by Israeli air superiority and also, I think, by the American position in the Middle East.”

The Israeli Air Force relies on hundreds of American fighter jets, including F-35s, F-16s and F-15s.

Turkey stepped up security and banned protests in Ankara during the summit, but a small group of demonstrators gathered in the capital on Tuesday. They were quickly surrounded by police and a legal association said 22 students affiliated with the left-wing Turkish Workers’ Party and three lawyers were arrested.

The objective of the summit is a stronger Europe for a stronger NATO. The Trump administration has warned its allies that they must manage Europe’s security alone as the United States focuses on China and the Indo-Pacific region.

The Pentagon wants a reboot and is promoting what it calls “NATO 3.0,” a vision for the alliance in which Europe takes greater responsibility for its own defense, allowing the United States to focus on other priorities.

But increasing defense spending means raising taxes or diverting resources from other priorities. British Defense Secretary John Healey leave unexpectedly last month, saying the British government was unwilling to spend at a time of growing threats.

On Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made a new call for his country to be allowed to join the alliance, saying its highly experienced and resilient armed forces would only strengthen the alliance’s defense capabilities.

He highlighted Ukraine’s adaptability and ability to strike deep inside Russia, hitting oil refineries and other energy targets. He said Ukraine’s armed forces were “wiping out” an average of 30,000 Russian troops every month.

“Frankly, we are not proud of it,” Zelensky said, emphasizing that the war with Russia – now in its fifth year – is “a war that we did not seek but are obliged to wage.”

Some northern and east-central countries are increasingly concerned that Russia may be preparing a hybrid attack – a combination of conventional warfare with tactics such as cyberattacks – against the continent. Russian President Vladimir Putin struggles to ensure victory in Ukraine.

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Associated Press writers Jill Lawless in London and Andy Wilks in Istanbul contributed to this report.