Trump arrives in Ankara for high-stakes NATO summit
President Trump landed in Turkey on Tuesday, touching down in Ankara for this week’s NATO summit.
On the tarmac, he was welcomed by Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan before Trump greeted Turkish soldiers assembled for the arrival.
U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack, U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matt Whitaker, and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Gen. Dan Caine were also on hand, according to the White House press pool.
Trump’s visit comes amid persistent friction between Washington and the alliance, driven in part by his criticism of NATO members’ defense spending.
In the hours before Trump’s plane touched down early Tuesday, NATO announced billions of dollars in military projects, which the organization’s Secretary General, Mark Rutte, called “money well spent.”
The summit convenes as Russia’s war in Ukraine grinds on. Trump is set to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines, less than three weeks after they spoke at the Group of Seven (G7) meeting in France. Following that meeting, the U.S. leader said Russia “should make a deal” to end the war.
Trump will also meet with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and will hold a press conference before returning to Washington on Wednesday.
