Turkey to Urge NATO Summit in Ankara to Reaffirm Alliance Unity

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will tell NATO foreign ministers this week that the next NATO leaders' summit should reaffirm the alliance's unity and integrity, a foreign ministry source said on Wednesday. Fidan will attend a meeting of NATO foreign ministers on Thursday and Friday in Sweden's Helsingborg.

During the meeting, Fidan will share Turkey's expectations regarding the Ankara summit and brief allied countries on Turkey's efforts to ensure that it serves as a high-level event reaffirming NATO's unity and integrity.

Turkey will host the next NATO leaders' summit in Ankara on July 7-8. Fidan will also provide information on Turkey's contributions to NATO and highlight Turkey's best practices regarding the conversion of defence expenditure into capabilities. Fidan will emphasise the need to develop transatlantic defence industry cooperation within NATO without any restrictions.

A separate Turkish diplomatic source said members of the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative, as well as Japan, New Zealand, South Korea and Australia, may be invited to the Ankara summit at the foreign minister level. The source said that all NATO allies will agree in the coming days on the summit invitees and the issue may be discussed at the meeting in Sweden.