Erdogan Does It Again: NATO Leaders Leave Ankara With Personalized Pistols

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan apparently found a very Erdogan way to send NATO leaders home: with engraved revolver pistols and live ammunition.

According to foreign media reports, leaders leaving the NATO summit in Ankara were each given a personalized handgun bearing their name, along with a box containing bullets.

The Turkish government and NATO did not publicly announce the gifts. The story surfaced after British Prime Minister Keir Starmer mentioned it to reporters on his way home.

The problem, unsurprisingly, began immediately. Several leaders reportedly could not legally take the weapons home under their own countries’ import and firearms rules.

Starmer reportedly left the pistol at the British Embassy in Turkey. Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten also reportedly left his behind.

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever only discovered the pistol after arriving back in Belgium and opening the package. He then handed it over to local police.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney reportedly turned his pistol over to police, with the possibility that it may later be donated to a museum.

Reports also said top European Union officials, including Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa, received similar gifts.

For most leaders, it was less a souvenir and more a legal headache. But as political theater goes, Erdogan once again did not disappoint.