United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, right, shakes hands during a meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on the sidelines of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on the sidelines of a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting in Sweden, where preparations for the upcoming Ankara summit and regional security issues were discussed.
Rubio said in a post on X that he and Fidan discussed the strategic need for NATO allies to fulfill their defense commitments and plans for the NATO summit to be hosted by Türkiye.
He said the two ministers also discussed efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and work toward broader regional stability.
NATO foreign ministers gathered in Helsingborg on May 21-22, less than two months before the alliance’s leaders meet in Ankara on July 7-8.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte earlier said the meeting in Sweden would help lay the groundwork for the Ankara summit, with ministers focusing on higher defense spending, increased defense production and continued support for Ukraine.
Rubio described the Ankara meeting as one of the more important summits in NATO history, saying U.S. President Donald Trump’s concerns over some allies’ responses to U.S. operations in the Middle East would need to be discussed at the leaders’ level.
The issue of whether NATO or individual allied countries could play a role in securing the Strait of Hormuz has also been raised, though there is no consensus on a NATO-flagged mission.
Defense spending and production capacity were also among the main topics in Sweden. Rutte has said allies are moving on commitments to raise defense spending and strengthen support for Ukraine.
Ukraine is also expected to be represented at the Ankara summit, where NATO leaders are due to discuss the alliance’s future posture, burden-sharing and regional security risks.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky will attend NATO's summit in the Turkish capital, Rutte said.
"I invited him already," Mark Rutte told reporters. "He will be there."
