Overview
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan presented each visiting head of state or government at the Ankara NATO summit with a named revolver, a box of ammunition and export paperwork.
- Recipients reacted differently: some left the weapons in Turkey, several handed pistols to airport police or their embassies, and others accepted the firearm but left the ammunition behind due to national law.
- Most governments have placed the revolvers in official custody for secure transport, inventory and deactivation, with Germany’s chancellor reported to have handed his pistol to the German embassy for transfer to Berlin.
- Existing diplomatic gift rules and firearms laws mean many leaders cannot keep the operational weapons privately, and the EU deactivation regulation is being used to render the pistols permanently unusable for display or museum use.
- Commentators say the gesture also served as political messaging about Turkey’s growing defence industry and status in the alliance, a signal that could boost Turkish arms sales and prompt closer scrutiny of future diplomatic gifts.