When Erdogan Gave NATO Leaders Revolvers: The Most Unconventional Diplomatic Gift in Summit History

What happens when a NATO summit ends not with a communique or a handshake, but with loaded firearms tucked into custom wooden boxes? That's exactly what went down in Ankara in July 2026.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan surprised just about everyone at the NATO summit by sending world leaders home with a gift nobody saw coming: vintage .357 Magnums, complete with live ammunition. Yep, you read that right.

NATO Summit In Madrid: You Pay Erdoğan's Price

NATO is now being expanded after all. This is good news for the alliance, very good news for the Turkish president - and bad news for Vladimir Putin.

Sometimes it's the small, tedious gestures and conversations that add up to bring about the greatest progress. Quite a few of these were undertaken before the NATO summit in Madrid, which begins on Wednesday. First, the White House reported a phone call between US President Joe Biden and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Then Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, followed up with the announcement that the two would meet in Madrid for bilateral talks. At a joint meeting with Erdoğan, Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson and Finnish President Sauli Niinistö, even before all delegations from the 30 member countries had even arrived, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg tried to make some progress towards a compromise. And what a distance they covered.

Ukraine conflict: Poland Sees Signs Of Increased Russian Military Presence In Belarus

Concerns about a troop deployment on the Ukrainian border continue to escalate. Russia completes a maneuver. Johnson, Blinken and Erdoğan are trying to talk.

According to Russia, it has completed a military exercise involving more than 6,000 soldiers. The exercises took place in the south of the country, for example in the Rostov and Volgograd regions, and air force units from the southern military district were involved, as the Ministry of Defense in Moscow announced.

In addition, 20 warships of the Black Sea Fleet have returned to naval bases in Novorossiysk and on the Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, which was annexed in 2014.

Turkey Does Not Want To Release Osman Kavala Despite The Threat Of Sanctions

As a member of the Council of Europe, Turkey would have to implement its request to release Osman Kavala. But the government refuses. What's next?

Despite the threat of sanctions by the Council of Europe, Turkey does not want to release the imprisoned cultural promoter Osman Kavala from prison. A Council of Europe spokesman said the country stuck to this stance until a response deadline expired on Wednesday.

The Council of Europe in Strasbourg recently initiated infringement proceedings against its member country Turkey in a historically almost unique step. Ankara was asked to provide feedback on this by Wednesday at midnight. 

Inflation in Turkey And "Great Master" Recep Tayyip Erdogan Pressure

Recep Tayyip Erdogan exchanges finance minister again

In the midst of a serious currency crisis, the Turkish president separates from his finance minister. He was only in office for a year.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is under pressure because the national currency is falling. He is trying to counteract this with a change in personnel: Finance Minister Lütfi Elvan will be replaced by Nureddin Nebati, according to an official announcement. Elvan had only held the office since November 2020, when he was appointed finance minister following the resignation of Erdogan's son-in-law Berat Albayrak.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan: He Is Not Doing Well

The rumors about Recep Tayyip Erdogan's health don't stop. Even if the Turkish president is not as sick as it is said, his power is dwindling.

"Erdogan is said to have died." The rumor spread in TurkeyQuickly a few days ago, right after the president had a meeting of his party, the Islamic-conservative AKP, canceled and was not seen for half a day. Party friends are said to have circulated it in chat groups, was learned in Ankara behind closed doors, the government itself did not really comment. 

Instead, his head of communications, Fahrettin Altun, published a short video hours later: Erdogan with his head bowed, walking a few steps on a rain-soaked reception carpet. No information as to when or where it should have been, just the words: "Trust the friend and fear the enemy ..." - shortly afterwards it was said that 30 people who had tweeted about the rumor were being investigated for insulting the president.

Osman Kavala | The Kavala Case Is Not About Turkey "Internal Affairs"

The diplomatic crisis between Erdogan and the West has been resolved for the time being. But there is more to it: internationally documented human rights. And the future of Turkey.

Erdogan's threats can no longer be relied on either. Last weekend the Turkish President threatened to have ten Western ambassadors, including the German one, deported as "undesirable persons". But after several haunting phone calls between Ankara , Washington and Berlin and a reassuring tweet from the US embassy in Ankara, Erdogan relented: expulsion canceled. But is that also the end of the crisis?

Osman Kavala | Erdogan Declares Ambassadors To Be Undesirable

Human rights activist Osman Kavala has been in Turkish custody without judgment for years. Diplomats from European countries had asked for his immediate release.

In the dispute over the imprisoned Turkish human rights activist Osman Kavala, Head of State Recep Tayyip Erdogan has the German ambassador, the US ambassador and eight other ambassadors declared "undesirable persons". 

Erdoğan said that he had instructed the Foreign Ministry to declare the diplomats persona non grata "as soon as possible". The ambassadors made a joint appeal earlier this week to demand the release of Kavala, which aroused the anger of the Turkish government.