At the NATO summit held in Ankara, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made a personal gesture to the attending leaders. According to UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Erdoğan gifted each leader custom-made pistols engraved with their names and ammunition boxes at the summit.
Speaking to journalists on the plane, Starmer said that along with the gift, a document signed by Erdoğan exempting the weapon from Turkish export restrictions was also provided. However, the British Prime Minister stated that he could not bring the gift into the UK due to the country's strict gun laws.
Starmer said he left the pistol in Turkey and had it deactivated. In the UK, handgun ownership was almost completely banned after the 1996 school shooting in Dunblane that killed 16 children and a teacher.
It is unclear whether other NATO leaders faced similar legal obstacles. Germany, however, reportedly proceeded by accepting the gift as an official state gift. According to the claim, German officials directed the pistol intended for the Chancellor to their embassy in Ankara, initiating the import process.
The gifts were presented during the NATO summit held on July 7-8, 2026, where topics such as defense spending, support for Ukraine, and military cooperation were discussed. The gesture is seen as a symbol of Turkey's rapidly growing defense industry in recent years.