Turkish President Erdogan welcomes Trump in Ankara

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday welcomed his US counterpart Donald Trump in the capital Ankara, as a two-day NATO summit kicked off.

Erdogan personally greeted Trump upon his arrival at Esenboga Airport.

An official welcoming ceremony will later be held at the presidential complex, after which they will hold bilateral talks and delegation-level meetings on regional and international issues.

The leaders are also expected to hold a news conference.

Earlier Tuesday, US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine visited Anitkabir, the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of the Republic of Türkiye. Caine, accompanied by a US delegation, observed a moment of silence before laying a wreath at Ataturk’s mausoleum.

NATO heads of state and government, as well as leaders from key partner countries, are meeting in Ankara for the alliance’s 2026 summit, which will focus on implementing the defense spending commitments agreed at last year’s meeting in the Hague, sustaining military support for Ukraine and expanding defense industrial production.