07.07.2026 13:50
The world's eyes and ears are turned to the capital Ankara today. The 36th NATO Summit, where global security policies will be reshaped, officially began with the Defense Industry Forum, which focuses on the joint production capacity and strategic investments of the allies. Speaking at the forum, Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz said, "All restrictions at the bilateral level among allies should be removed. Türkiye, which contributes to NATO, should be able to participate in all defense and security initiatives in Europe, particularly in the EU."
Ankara is hosting one of the most critical summits in NATO history. The 36th NATO Summit of Heads of State and Government, hosted by Ankara, began with the Defense Industry Forum, where transatlantic defense production and investments will take center stage. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte announced at the Defense Industry Forum that the alliance will increase its air power capacity with the 10th Airbus A330 MRTT aircraft. President Erdoğan will meet with 32 heads of state and government at the Presidential Complex as part of the summit. Meanwhile, Erdoğan and US President Trump will meet at 15:00.
HERE IS THE MINUTE-BY-MINUTE ACCOUNT
13:30 CEVDET YILMAZ: ALLIES' RESTRICTIONS MUST BE LIFTED
Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz, speaking at the Defense Industry Forum held as part of the 36th NATO Summit of Heads of State and Government at ATO Congresium, said, "Today, Turkey ranks 11th among defense exporting countries in the world. We aim to enter the top 10 countries in the near future."
Yilmaz stated, "Our defense and aerospace exports have exceeded 11 billion dollars in the last year. More than half of our exports were made to our NATO allies and EU countries."
Yilmaz also called for "All bilateral restrictions among allies should be lifted. Turkey, which makes significant contributions to NATO's European pillar, should be able to participate in all defense and security initiatives in Europe, especially the EU."
13:15 RUTTE: WE NEED TO WORK TOGETHER
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte made statements at the summit, which is being held in Turkey after 22 years.
In his statement, Rutte said:
"I will start with a football analogy. No team wins with a million players or with a single player. Teamwork scores goals. Behind every successful player, there are many supporting people. No one wins alone. NATO is in a similar situation. To deter successfully, we need to work together."
"Our armed forces are constantly together, and you form the support team. For our strength, we all must be in the game and work together. You need our armies because you want to deliver your military capacity. I have visited factories, including those in Turkey. I have seen the innovation and opportunity here. I can see our partnership progressing in this forum. This is a collaborative team."
11:30 350 MILLION DOLLARS WORTH OF SIGNATURES MADE
At the first-ever Defense Industry Forum in NATO history, Turkey signed contracts worth a total of 350 million dollars with ASELSAN for low-orbit satellite communications and early warning radar systems within the scope of the Steel Dome.
NATO Deputy Secretary General Radmila Sekerinska, commenting on the matter, said, "Turkey will develop two new high-resolution satellites based on the IMECE earth observation satellite. A contract worth approximately 300 million dollars will be signed for satellites to be developed in Turkey by TÜBİTAK UZAY. Turkey has also signed contracts worth a total of 350 million dollars with ASELSAN for low-orbit satellite communications and early warning radar systems within the scope of the Steel Dome. These investments will strengthen Turkey's battlefield connectivity and early warning capabilities."
11:00 MINISTER GULER SPOKE AT THE DEFENSE INDUSTRY FORUM
National Defense Minister Yaşar Güler, in his speech at the event, made the following statements:
The war in Ukraine has demonstrated the importance of ammunition supply speed, unmanned systems, air/missile defense, electronic warfare, and rapid innovation. Developments in the Strait of Hormuz have proven that supply chain and transportation route security are now an integral part of defense planning.
We also consider NATO's 2% defense investment commitment important. Because this commitment is a concrete indicator of the alliance's will to strengthen deterrence, scale up defense production, and deploy the capabilities we need on the field in a timely manner.
Referring to ammunition and technology investments, Güler said, "We have rapidly increased our 155mm ammunition production capacity and became one of the allies producing concrete results in this area. With ROKETSAN's new production and integration investments, we are significantly expanding our missile and ammunition production capacities. The investments of our companies such as ASELSAN and HAVELSAN in radar, electronic warfare, communications, command control, software, simulation, and AI-supported systems are advancing our defense industry capacity not only quantitatively but also qualitatively."
Emphasizing cooperation, Minister Güler stated, "Success on the field depends not only on existing stocks but also on the capacity for rapid learning, rapid production, and rapid adaptation. From drone technologies to electronic warfare, from ammunition production to software updates, as the distance between soldiers, engineers, entrepreneurs, and decision-makers shortens, effectiveness on the front line increases. Therefore, our task is to build this culture of cooperation in peacetime."
10:00 NATO SUMMIT BEGAN WITH DEFENSE INDUSTRY FORUM
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 take center stage.
The Defense Industry Forum, which started at ATO Congresium, will be the most comprehensive industry event in NATO history.
NATO heads of state and government will also meet on July 8 at the Presidential Complex.
Events with the participation of NATO defense and foreign ministers will be held today at the Presidential Complex.
Designed as a side event of NATO for the last 3-4 years, the Defense Industry Forum is being included in the official program of the summit for the first time in Turkey.
According to the program shared by NATO, Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz, National Defense Minister Yaşar Güler, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte are scheduled to speak at the Forum, where an important announcement is expected.
Under the Forum, where various sessions on the defense industry will be held, Rutte and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will also make statements.
NATO Secretary General Rutte stated that increasing defense industry production will be one of the most important topics of the Forum.
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, UK 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 as part of the 36th NATO Summit of Heads of State and Government.
Within the scope of the summit, foreign ministers and defense ministers will also come together at working dinners.
Under the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative, which was launched at the 2004 NATO Summit in Istanbul and includes Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates, a special session at the level of foreign ministers will be held, and the NATO Istanbul Cooperation Initiative Foreign Ministers Meeting will take place.
At the summit, one of the most important expectations is that the allies will send a message of unity and solidarity despite the recent increase in tensions in transatlantic relations.
Among the main agenda items is the construction of the "NATO 3.0" vision, which envisages Europe assuming leadership in conventional defense and the reassessment of the US military presence in Europe.
At the summit, where the future of support for Ukraine will also be discussed, allies are expected to make commitments to increase their defense spending and defense industry production capacities.
The NATO Ankara Summit will be the NATO summit with the most intense participation from the international press.