Erdoğan receives NATO chief in Ankara
ANKARA
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan received NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte in Ankara on April 22, with the meeting held behind closed doors at the Presidential Complex.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, National Defense Minister Yaşar Güler and Akif Çağatay Kılıç, the president’s chief foreign policy and security adviser, also attended the talks.
No immediate statement was issued on the content of the meeting.
Before the meeting, Rutte said the alliance would do "what's necessary to defend" its members including Türkiye.
Rutte met with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan during his visit, with discussions expected to focus heavily on preparations for the Ankara summit and growing tensions between Washington and European allies over burden-sharing and strategic priorities.
The meetings came at a sensitive moment for the alliance, with officials working to ensure the July 7-8 summit projects unity in capital Ankara amid widening differences between the United States and European members.
Efforts to resolve disputes over defense spending and broader responsibility-sharing within NATO were expected to be among the central topics on the agenda.
A member of the U.S.-led defense alliance, Türkiye, which borders Iran, has been largely spared the sort of retaliation from Tehran suffered by countries in the Middle East before the ceasefire.
NATO forces have shot down ballistic missiles fired from Iran four times, prompting the alliance to deploy a new Patriot missile battery at İncirlik air base in southern Türkiye.
"Iran is spreading terror and chaos, and you feel this prominently here in Türkiye," Rutte told journalists on a visit to Türkiye's largest defense electronics company Aselsan.
"In recent weeks, NATO has successfully intercepted ballistic missiles heading to Türkiye from Iran on four separate occasions," he said.
"NATO is prepared for such threats and will always do what is necessary to defend Türkiye and all others. And we cannot do it alone."
Rutte praised the progress made by the country in the defense field. "Türkiye has gone through a defense industrial revolution. I could really say it's a revolution in recent years," he said.
"This is needed because we live in a more dangerous world... and that means we need strong defenses to protect our security."
In comments to state-run Anadolu Agency earlier this month, Fidan described the upcoming gathering in Ankara as potentially “the most important summit in NATO’s history,” adding that Türkiye was working closely with Rutte on preparations.
Attention is also focused on whether U.S. President Donald Trump will attend the summit. Turkish officials have suggested Trump has been reluctant but may still come out of personal ties with Erdoğan, though Washington has not confirmed his participation. American media have reported tensions between Trump and NATO leadership, including skepticism about the alliance’s future role.