Nato leaders discussed security in Turkiye, got revolvers as return gift

Ankara: Western leaders came to Turkiye to discuss security in an increasingly perilous world. They each left with a revolver and six rounds. The unconventional gift from the host of this week’s Nato summit, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was meant to showcase his country’s growing defence industry.But it left officials across the alliance scratching their heads. Some were forced to leave their gifts behind due to gun laws in their countries, while others donated theirs to museums. “It struck me that my gift of maple syrup kind of undermatched,” Canadian PM Mark Carney told reporters, adding that the firearm was now in police possession. “I would like to reassure Canadians, they keep guns away from me.”“An unusual gift from President Erdogan at the Nato Summit: a Magnum revolver with ammunition, engraved with my name,” Hungary’s new PM Peter Magyar said on X, posting a photograph of a display box containing the revolver and six cartridges.Ursula von der Leyen, the European Union commission president, thanked Erdogan for the gift, which will be decommissioned and donated to a military museum, her spokesperson said. In Greece, officials said the firearm would be donated to the ‘War Museum’.Outgoing British PM Keir Starmer told reporters that the gift bag included a note waiving export controls. Still, he left his behind to be decommissioned, because it would be illegal to import it into Britain.Belgian PM Bart De Wever handed his revolver to police upon arrival. The revolvers gifted to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Dutch PM Rob Jetten were left at their countries’ embassies in Ankara and would also be taken out of service, officials said.The White House did not immediately respond to questions about Erdogan’s gift to the leaders of Nato countries.Turkish media reports identified the revolvers as the Gumusay . 357 Magnum, a vintage six-shot revolver produced by the Turkish state arms manufacturer, MKE. Gun culture is deeply rooted in Turkiye. Umut Vakfi, a foundation campaigning for gun control, says incidents of armed violence have reached alarming levels, reporting over 2,700 last year in the country of 86 million people.