07.07.2026 10:41
The 36th NATO Heads of State and Government Summit, hosted by Ankara, officially kicked off with a first-of-its-kind 'Defense Industry Forum' in alliance history. The platform that first announced to the Turkish public that this historic forum would be included in the official NATO summit program was Haberler.com.
The 36th NATO Summit of Heads of State and Government, hosted by Ankara, began with the Defense Industry Forum, where transatlantic defense production and related investments will be at the forefront. The Defense Industry Forum, starting at ATO Congresium, will be the most comprehensive industry event in NATO's history.
DEFENSE INDUSTRY FORUM INCLUDED IN NATO SUMMIT'S OFFICIAL PROGRAM FOR THE FIRST TIME
NATO heads of state and government will also convene at the Presidential Complex on July 8. Events with NATO defense and foreign ministers will be held at the Presidential Complex today.
The Defense Industry Forum, designed as a side event of NATO for the last 3-4 years, is being held for the first time in Turkey as part of the summit's official program.
According to the program shared by NATO, a significant announcement is expected at the Forum, with Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz, Defense Minister Yaşar Güler, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte scheduled to speak.
Within the Forum, which will host various sessions on the defense industry, Rutte and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will also make statements.
NATO Secretary General Rutte noted that increasing defense industry production would be one of the Forum's most critical topics.
JOINT PROJECTS WERE INTRODUCED
One of the most important agenda items of the highly-attended forum was the introduction of joint projects developed by NATO countries through a coalition of forces.
HABERLER.COM FIRST ANNOUNCED IT
Taking an unprecedented step in NATO summits to date, making the defense industry a direct official agenda item was recorded as one of the most striking innovations of the Ankara summit. This historic development, which will affect global defense strategies, was announced by Haberler.com in an exclusive report long before the summit work began.
ANKARA HOSTS WORLD LEADERS
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will meet with leaders including US President Donald Trump, French President Emmanuel Macron, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Slovak President Peter Pellegrini, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev, Montenegrin Prime Minister Milojko Spajic, NATO Secretary General Rutte, and European Council President Antonio Costa during the 36th NATO Summit of Heads of State and Government.
As part of the summit, foreign ministers and defense ministers will also come together at working dinners.
Within the scope of the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative, launched during the 2004 NATO Summit in Istanbul and involving Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates, a special session at the foreign ministers level will be held, and the NATO Istanbul Cooperation Initiative Foreign Ministers Meeting will take place.
At the summit, delivering a message of unity and solidarity among allies, despite the increasing tensions in transatlantic relations recently, is among the most significant expectations.
Key agenda items include building the "NATO 3.0" vision, which envisions Europe taking the lead in conventional defense and reassessing the US military presence in Europe.
At the summit, which will also address the future of support for Ukraine, allies are expected to commit to increasing their defense expenditures and defense industry production capacities.
The NATO Ankara Summit will be the NATO summit with the highest participation from the international press.