{"id":34230,"date":"2026-07-08T01:47:21","date_gmt":"2026-07-08T05:47:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/nato-summit-in-ankara-sees-big-defense-investment-push\/"},"modified":"2026-07-08T01:47:21","modified_gmt":"2026-07-08T05:47:21","slug":"nato-summit-in-ankara-sees-big-defense-investment-push","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/nato-summit-in-ankara-sees-big-defense-investment-push\/","title":{"rendered":"NATO Summit in Ankara Sees Big Defense Investment Push"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Hello from Ankara for a special NATO summit edition of Foreign Policy<\/em>\u2019s Situation Report.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what\u2019s on tap for the day: NATO spends<\/strong> big bucks, Ukraine wins<\/strong> more admirers, and Belgium\u2019s defense minister discusses that World Cup victory<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

U.S. President Donald Trump likes big numbers. He also doesn\u2019t like NATO\u2014as he has repeatedly made it known ahead of the alliance\u2019s annual summit in Ankara, Turkey, which began on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

So NATO put out some really big numbers just hours before Trump touched down in the Turkish capital, announcing defense investments worth \u201cbillions, literally billions\u201d (in the words of NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte) by countries across the alliance. That includes a commitment<\/a> to invest $40 billion in counter-drone capabilities over the next five years, investments in integrated air and missile defense worth more than $26 billion, and new strike capabilities worth $1.6 billion.<\/p>\n

While several of the companies making those deals were from the United States\u2014including established bigwigs Lockheed Martin and Raytheon as well as emerging bigwigs Palantir and Anduril\u2014there were also several European companies such as Germany\u2019s Rheinmetall, France\u2019s Airbus, Sweden\u2019s Saab, and Turkey\u2019s Aselsan.<\/p>\n

Rutte presented the investments as starting to deliver on the spending targets that member countries committed to under pressure from Trump at last year\u2019s NATO summit in The Hague. \u201cOne year ago in The Hague, allies committed to invest a lot more in defense\u20145 percent of GDP by 2035,\u201d Rutte said while announcing the investments. \u201cAnd here we are now, one year later in Ankara, already delivering results.\u201d<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s summit is \u201cabout making sure that all the allies put their money where their mouth is,\u201d Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson told SitRep. \u201cWhat we need right now, the absolutely most crucial thing, is to ramp up production so we can transform this massive defense investment into combat power,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

A \u2018good start.\u2019<\/strong> But the persistent question is whether it will be enough to keep Trump onside. The U.S. president continued to criticize NATO even after arriving in Ankara, complaining about allies\u2019 lack of support in the U.S.-Iran war. \u201cI was very disappointed with NATO,\u201d Trump told reporters on Tuesday ahead of a bilateral meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. \u201cWhy are we spending hundreds of billions of dollars, and they\u2019re not there for us?\u201d<\/p>\n

U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matt Whitaker described the allies\u2019 financial commitments thus far as a \u201cgood start,\u201d adding that \u201csome allies are doing better than others\u201d in reaching the 5 percent target. \u201cPresident Trump expects all allies to step up immediately,\u201d he told reporters in a briefing ahead of the summit.<\/p>\n

So how much will it take to make the United States happy? Finnish Defense Minister Antti Hakkanen gave SitRep a slight smirk when we asked him that. \u201cWell, I think that\u2019s the most crucial question in this summit,\u201d he said. \u201cWe are on the right track. I know that the Americans are saying that the speed has to be a little bit faster\u2014OK, but we are on the right track, and that\u2019s why I think that President Trump and Mr. [U.S. Defense Secretary Pete] Hegseth from the Pentagon should be satisfied.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jonson of Sweden, which joined NATO in 2024 along with Finland (which joined in 2023) as the alliance\u2019s newest members, also appeared amused by the question. \u201cMy job is not to make the U.S. happy,\u201d he said. \u201cI want a more balanced trans-Atlantic relationship. Addiction to U.S. military power is unhealthy for Europe, but it\u2019s also unhealthy for the U.S.,\u201d he added. \u201cNow, the key is to make sure we transform this massive investment into concrete power, and we do it quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n

10:45 a.m.<\/strong> Welcome ceremony for visiting heads of state and government, hosted by Rutte and Erdogan.<\/p>\n

11:00 a.m.<\/strong> Official family photo of NATO leaders.<\/p>\n

11:15 a.m.<\/strong> Meeting of the North Atlantic Council of heads of state and government.<\/p>\n

3:00 p.m.<\/strong> Rutte hosts a press conference.<\/p>\n

(Trump will spend the afternoon holding bilateral meetings with Zelensky and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, followed by a press conference before he departs Ankara.)<\/p>\n

At NATO summits in recent years, conversations on Ukraine often focused on how the country was outmatched by Russia and in desperate need of assistance. But this year, as Ukraine\u2019s new strategy in the war has begun to turn the tide against Moscow\u2014and as militaries around the world increasingly learn from Kyiv\u2019s tactics in the fight\u2014there\u2019s a notable change in tone.<\/p>\n

NATO allies have seemingly begun to view Ukraine more as an example to follow than a country in need of rescuing.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been really interesting to see over the past few months the change in dynamic between Ukraine and Russia. There\u2019s a clear realization all over Europe, but also in [Washington,] D.C., [that] the difficulties are mounting on the Russian side,\u201d Tristan Aureau, director of the French Foreign Ministry\u2019s Center for Analysis, Planning, and Strategy, told SitRep.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s striking to see that, be it in the Gulf or in Europe, it\u2019s now Ukraine who\u2019s able to contribute to our security, and I think this realization is a big change in the paradigm as to how we see Ukraine as instrumental, and I would say central, to European security,\u201d Aureau said.<\/p>\n

Europe has come a long way from \u201cjust supporting Ukraine\u201d and seeing it as a \u201cbeneficiary of what we could deliver,\u201d Aureau added. \u201cThe fact is, Ukraine now has the most powerful, the best-trained army on the continent.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Trump likes to back a winner.\u2019<\/strong> Trump has also begun to speak about Ukraine in far more positive terms than in the past. SitRep asked U.S. Democratic Sen. Chris Coons, who is part of a bipartisan delegation of U.S. lawmakers at the summit, if he thinks this will last, given Trump\u2019s history of flip-flopping and criticizing Ukraine. \u201cPredicting that anything President Trump has as a view or an opinion will last is dangerous work, but there\u2019s a couple of traits that President Trump has that you can reasonably predict as well,\u201d Coons said. \u201cTrump likes to back a winner. He does not like to be associated with \u2018losers.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump has treated \u201c[Russian President Vladimir] Putin not as a war criminal, not as someone who has carried out a horrific war of aggression, but as someone he respects,\u201d Coons said. But the senator said he believes \u201cwe\u2019re finally at a point\u201d where Trump is \u201cbeginning to see that Putin likely cannot win, and that [Trump] is risking his reputation and his role by continuing to support him.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the lead-up to the NATO summit, John spoke with Ukraine\u2019s ambassador to the United States about this shifting dynamic in the war and what Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky plans to discuss when he meets with Trump on Wednesday in Ankara. Read the full interview here.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/span>
\n U.S. President Donald Trump (right) walks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a state arrival ceremony at the Bestepe Presidential Complex in Ankara, Turkey, on July 7.<\/p>\n

U.S. President Donald Trump (right) walks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a state arrival ceremony at the Bestepe Presidential Complex in Ankara, Turkey, on July 7.Win McNamee\/Getty Images<\/span> <\/p>\n

SitRep caught up (again) with Belgian Defense Minister Theo Francken on the sidelines of the NATO Defense Industry Forum in Ankara on Tuesday. NATO relations and European defense were obviously a key topic we wanted to talk to him about.<\/p>\n

But Belgium had also just come off a thumping 4-1 victory against the United States at the FIFA World Cup under controversial circumstances, with Trump having personally called FIFA boss Gianni Infantino to ask that the sport\u2019s governing body review U.S. star Folarin Balogun\u2019s red card suspension ahead of the game so that Balogun could potentially play against Belgium. FIFA did so and suspended<\/a> the suspension, allowing Balogun to play. (Infantino insists<\/a> that Trump\u2019s call did not influence the review\u2019s outcome.) Belgium appealed the decision, but FIFA dismissed the appeal.<\/p>\n

And then Belgium won anyway.<\/p>\n

Francken was stopped by two separate people to talk about the World Cup win as we walked to our interview space, and he apologized for stifling a yawn before explaining that he had been up watching the match at the Belgian ambassador to Turkey\u2019s residence until 5 a.m. local time. \u201cEveryone\u2019s been talking about the World Cup\u201d and congratulating him on Belgium\u2019s performance, he said. \u201cEven the Americans.\u201d<\/p>\n

Francken declined to be drawn into a discussion on Trump\u2019s intervention, only calling it a \u201cbizarre maneuver\u201d before quickly moving on.<\/p>\n

But he did expand on his criticism<\/a> of Trump\u2019s recent comments about Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, with Trump claiming Meloni \u201cbegged\u201d him for a photo at the G-7 summit in France (a claim she denied) and joking in a Truth Social post<\/a> before flying to Ankara that he would need a \u201crestraining order\u201d against her.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that it\u2019s not very good to have food fights all the time on, like, taking a picture or a photo together,\u201d Francken said. \u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s very useful when you have to show cohesion and not division, because united we stand, divided we fall,\u201d he added. \u201cI think that the only one drinking Champagne is Putin and the adversaries.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hello from Ankara for a special NATO summit edition of Foreign Policy\u2019s Situation Report. Here\u2019s what\u2019s on tap for the day: NATO spends big bucks, Ukraine wins more admirers, and Belgium\u2019s defense minister discusses that World Cup victory. U.S. President Donald Trump likes big numbers. He also doesn\u2019t like NATO\u2014as he has repeatedly made it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":34231,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[11611],"tags":[22783,3784,721,205,7944,24272,485,12371,7882,1488,18016,9497,22102,5693,953,3714,2749,3341,5522,2359],"class_list":["post-34230","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-spyballoon-global-news","tag-ankara","tag-belgium","tag-big","tag-defense","tag-europe","tag-finland","tag-france","tag-homepage_regional_europe","tag-investment","tag-military","tag-missile-defense","tag-nato","tag-nato-summit","tag-push","tag-russia","tag-sees","tag-summit","tag-sweden","tag-turkey","tag-ukraine"],"rttpg_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",0,0,false],"landscape":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",0,0,false],"portraits":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",0,0,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",150,150,false],"medium":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",300,300,false],"large":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",1024,1024,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",1536,1536,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",2048,2048,false],"post-thumbnail":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",370,265,false],"kava-thumb-s":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",150,85,false],"kava-thumb-s-2":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",230,230,false],"kava-thumb-m":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",400,400,false],"kava-thumb-m-vertical":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",370,500,false],"kava-thumb-m-2":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",570,450,false],"kava-thumb-l":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",1170,650,false],"kava-thumb-xl":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",1920,1080,false],"kava-thumb-masonry":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",600,999,false],"kava-thumb-justify":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",640,640,false],"kava-thumb-justify-2":["https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285044044.jpg",1280,640,false]},"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"#RiseCelestialStudios","author_link":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/author\/ralph-c\/"},"rttpg_comment":0,"rttpg_category":"SPYBALLOON GLOBAL NEWS<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"Hello from Ankara for a special NATO summit edition of Foreign Policy\u2019s Situation Report. 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