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Erdogan's unusual gift to NATO leaders

2026-07-09 17:13:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Erdogan's unusual gift to NATO leaders

After the end of the NATO summit, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gifted all heads of state and government with a firearm, a "Gumusay.357 Magnum" revolver, manufactured in Turkey in the 1990s by the state-owned company MKE.

The gun was placed in a wooden box with the Turkish flag and NATO logo, as well as a plaque stating that it was "the first revolver produced in Turkey."

According to the office of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, all leaders received the same model, engraved with each person's name.

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever immediately handed over the revolver to Brussels airport police to store in a safe.

Meanwhile, the President of Poland, Karol Nawrocki, has left the weapon awaiting customs procedures at Warsaw airport, while an adviser to him stressed that it will be stored safely and that "no one will shoot it."

The offices of the prime ministers of the Netherlands and Sweden announced that the revolvers had been sent to their countries' embassies in Ankara. The Netherlands plans to deactivate the weapon, while Sweden is waiting for the import documentation to be completed.

According to a Downing Street source, the revolver gifted to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was also equipped with a cleaning kit and 500 rounds of ammunition.

On the other hand, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has deposited the weapon at Palazzo Chigi, along with other state gifts.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen intends to donate the revolver to a military museum, while the Greek prime minister plans to hand it over to the War Museum in Athens.

The unusual gift was intended to promote the Turkish defense industry, which has become one of Turkey's most important export and diplomatic sectors.

According to the Geneva-based Small Arms Survey, Turkey was the world's third-largest exporter of small arms during the period 2019–2024, with exports worth about $3 billion, after the United States and Italy. /CNA





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