Turkey Gifts NATO Leaders Engraved Revolvers With Live Ammunition

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gave NATO leaders an unusual parting gift following a two-day summit in Ankara, presenting each of them with a personalised revolver and ammunition. The weapons were displayed in wooden boxes featuring the Turkish flag and NATO logo, creating unexpected logistical and legal challenges for several visiting delegations.

Images shared by world leaders showed what appeared to be the Gumusay .357 Magnum, a rare six-shot revolver produced by Turkish state-owned arms manufacturer MKE in the 1990s. Each weapon was reportedly engraved with the recipient’s name and accompanied by ammunition, a cleaning kit and documentation exempting the gift from Turkish export controls.

Transporting the fully functional firearms proved complicated because of differing national laws and customs requirements. Revolvers presented to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten initially remained in Ankara. Other delegations had to make special arrangements to secure, deactivate or obtain clearance for the weapons.

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Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever handed his revolver to airport police in Brussels for secure storage, while Polish President Karol Nawrocki’s gift was held at Warsaw Airport pending customs clearance. The Dutch weapon was sent to the country’s embassy in Ankara for deactivation, while the Swedish prime minister’s revolver remained there awaiting import paperwork.

Other leaders chose different destinations for their gifts. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s revolver was stored at Palazzo Chigi with other official state gifts, while European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen planned to donate hers to a military museum. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said his weapon had been deactivated and could eventually be displayed in a national war museum.

The gifts were seen as a showcase for Turkey’s expanding defence industry, which has become an important source of exports and a tool of foreign policy. According to the Geneva-based Small Arms Survey, Turkey was the world’s third-largest exporter of small arms between 2019 and 2024, with exports worth about $3 billion, behind only the United States and Italy.

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