A Pistol Instead of a Souvenir: Why Erdogan Gave NATO Leaders Weapons and Why Many Rushed to Get Rid of Them

At the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan decided to surprise foreign leaders with an unusual diplomatic gift. Instead of the usual commemorative souvenirs — pens, watches or works of art — each head of state and government received a personalized Gumusay .357 Magnum revolver made in Turkey, engraved with their own name. The set also included a box with six live rounds, a gun-cleaning kit and a book about Erdogan himself.

An unexpected surprise

According to summit participants, many delegations initially did not even realize what exactly was inside the gift boxes. At such international meetings, the exchange of commemorative gifts has long been a tradition, so the boxes are often simply sent into luggage without being opened right away.

Only later did it become clear that the gifts were fully functional firearms with ammunition. For a number of European leaders, this became an unexpected problem: the laws of their countries do not allow such gifts to be freely transported or kept, even if they are presented by an official from another state.

What was done with the gifts

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was among the first to face difficulties. Because of British rules on importing weapons, he decided to leave the gift in Turkey. The revolver will later be deactivated — made unsuitable for firing, after which it will become a museum exhibit. A similar decision was made by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa.

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever discovered the revolver only after returning home and handed it over to police officers at the airport. The Dutch delegation also preferred to surrender the weapon to the authorities, while Germany left the gift at its embassy in Ankara until all necessary legal procedures are completed.

Others chose to keep the weapon

However, far from everyone saw the gift as a problem.

Slovak President Peter Pellegrini smiled as he showed the personalized revolver to journalists, while Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar posted photos of the gift on social media, calling it an unusual souvenir. In Poland, representatives of the presidential administration said that no one intends to use the weapon for its intended purpose, but the gift has been officially accepted and its future status will be determined after the necessary procedures are completed.

A showcase for Turkey's arms industry

Experts believe that such an unusual gift was no coincidence. Over the past few years, Turkey has become one of the largest arms producers, actively promoting drones, armored vehicles, ships and small arms on the global market.

The personalized revolver became a kind of advertisement for Turkey's defense industry and a symbol of its ambitions. Each example was made specifically for a particular recipient, and the gift set was accompanied by official export documents.

A gift that divided the leaders

The revolver story quickly became one of the most discussed topics after the summit ended. Some politicians decided to get rid of the weapons as quickly as possible or make them unusable for shooting, while others calmly accepted the gift and even showed it to the public.

As a result, Erdogan's diplomatic gesture unexpectedly became one of the summit's brightest episodes. And while the security talks will long be analyzed by experts, the story of the personalized revolvers is already being called one of the most unusual cases of official gift exchange in modern diplomacy.