Overview
- NATO leaders at the Ankara summit committed €70 billion for Ukraine in 2026 and agreed to over $50 billion in new defence procurements to expand missile defences, drones and AI-enabled systems.
- The alliance also endorsed stepped-up joint arms production to speed deliveries and licensing, a move intended to increase long-term supply of critical munitions and air-defence interceptors for Ukraine.
- President Trump told leaders he will seek to license Ukraine to produce missiles for Patriot air-defence systems and said he would allow Turkey back into the F-35 program, while privately reassuring allies the U.S. would not abandon NATO.
- Hours after summit meetings, U.S. Central Command reported strikes on Iranian air-defence and maritime targets and President Trump said the June ceasefire with Iran was effectively over, a development that raises the danger of further military exchanges.
- The summit reflects a shift to heavier European defence spending after Russia's 2022 invasion, promises faster protection for civilians through improved air defences, and creates second-order risks that U.S.-Iran escalation could complicate NATO logistics and base access in Europe.