Donald Trump arrived in Ankara on the first day of the NATO Summit, stepping off Air Force One to a large welcoming cere...

Donald Trump arrived in Ankara on the first day of the NATO Summit, stepping off Air Force One to a large welcoming ceremony where Turkish President Erdogan greeted him personally on the tarmac. Trump addressed the crowd in Turkish, saying "Merhaba asker," drawing a warm reaction from those gathered. At the summit, Trump expressed his desire to move forward with delivering F-35 fighter jets to Turkey, describing Erdogan as a close personal friend and signaling he wants to remove the barriers that have blocked the sale for years. Turkey was originally removed from the F-35 program in 2019 after Ankara purchased the Russian S-400 missile defense system, a decision that triggered U.S. sanctions under CAATSA and effectively froze Turkey out of the program. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also attended the Ankara summit and made a point of acknowledging Turkey's military weight within NATO. She described Turkey as one of the alliance's largest armed forces and said it has always played an important role, while also referencing Turkey's relationship with the European Union. The summit marks the first time a NATO leaders meeting has been held in Turkey in decades. Trump's warm personal framing of his relationship with Erdogan and his push to restore the F-35 deal signals a significant shift in U.S.-Turkey relations, one that carries direct implications for Greece and Cyprus given Turkey's ongoing disputes with both. Greece has long raised concerns about any potential transfer of advanced American fighter jets to Turkey, arguing it would upset the military balance in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean. The F-35 is considerably more advanced than any aircraft currently in the Turkish or Greek air force inventories. #NATO #TrumpErdogan #F35