Türkiye: Finnish president calls Ankara summit one of NATO’s ‘most important’ ever.

SHOTLIST: ANKARA, TÜRKİYE (JULY 7, 2026) 1. FINNISH PRESIDENT ALEXANDER STUBB SPEAKING TO REPORTER (English)ANKARA, TÜRKİYE - JULY 7: Finnish President Alexander Stubb on Tuesday described the NATO summit in Ankara as one of the alliance's most important gatherings, saying it comes at a critical moment for global politics and trans-Atlantic security. Speaking to Anadolu at the NATO Summit Defense Industry Forum, held as part of the 36th NATO Heads of State and Government Summit, Stubb said he was pleased that Ankara, Türkiye, and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan were hosting the meeting. "I think it's good to be here at a very important juncture in world politics, and especially an important moment for the alliance," Stubb said. - Ankara summit about implementing 5% defense spending target Asked about NATO's transformation, Stubb said the alliance was entering what he called "NATO 3.0," following the Cold War-era alliance and the post-Cold War period of peacekeeping and operations beyond NATO territory. "Now we start NATO 3.0, which is basically a stronger Europe in a stronger NATO," he said. Stubb said last year's NATO summit in The Hague focused on setting a target of raising defense spending from 2% to 5% of gross domestic product, while the Ankara summit was about putting that target into practice. "The Ankara summit this year is about implementing that target," he said, adding that the defense industry forum in Ankara is a key part of that effort by bringing European and American defense companies together to support further investment. "I just met with President Erdogan, and this is one of the most important NATO summits that we have ever had," he said. - Türkiye, Finland connected through NATO flank security Stressing Türkiye's role on NATO's southeastern flank, Stubb said Finland and Türkiye are closely connected through their responsibilities in different parts of the alliance. "Türkiye takes care of the southeastern flank. We in Finland, we take care of the northeastern flank, so we are in many ways connected. And that's why we find this summit to be so important," he said. On defense cooperation with Türkiye, Stubb said Türkiye's geographic location exposed it to more complex security challenges than Finland. "We have one security threat, and that is Russia. You have quite a few in the neighborhood," he said. Stubb underlined the importance of cooperation with Türkiye on land, at sea, and in the air, noting that Türkiye has one of the largest militaries in the alliance. "We understand what security means and what it means to have a strong defense," he said. Referring to his talks with Erdogan, Stubb said the two leaders agreed to continue and deepen cooperation in the defense industry. "When I spoke with President Erdogan, we decided that we are going to continue our cooperation and deepen our cooperation in the defense industry," he added.