At the NATO summit in Ankara, US President Donald Trump's provocative remarks are testing alliance unity. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing BBC News.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan personally welcomed Trump at the airport, and the two walked arm-in-arm as Turkish jets performed a flypast with red, white, and blue smoke.
Shortly after landing, Trump repeated his suggestion that the US should take over Greenland. Denmark's prime minister had previously said that a US takeover by force would spell the end of the alliance.
Trump criticized NATO allies for not joining his war with Iran, singling out UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. "He said he'd help after the war. I said I don't want that kind of help. We didn't need any help. I was testing people," Trump said.
NATO delegates are discussing rearming Europe and defense industry cooperation. Large contracts were announced for a new fleet of Airbus transport aircraft. NATO's aging AWACS planes will be replaced by Sweden's GlobeEye aircraft.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged allies to provide air defense systems. "Europe needs its own effective anti-ballistic systems. This work is already underway, but it cannot wait until 2030 or beyond," Zelensky said.
As the US reduces its defense commitments in Europe, the need for credible air defenses against Russian missiles and drones grows. Delegates fear that after the war in Ukraine ends, Russia could threaten NATO territory within four years.