The 36th NATO Heads of State and Government Summit hosted by Ankara has come to an end. Following two days of meetings at the Presidential Complex, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte described the summit as \u201cextremely successful\u201d and said the commitments made by allies are now being put into action in Ankara.<\/p>\n
Speaking at a press conference after the summit, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said the meetings in Ankara marked an important stage for the Alliance. Rutte said, \u201cThe message of this summit is simple: NATO delivers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Referring to the decisions taken at last year\u2019s summit in The Hague, Rutte said the commitments made by allies to strengthen the Alliance were now being implemented in Ankara under the hosting of President Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan.<\/p>\n
Increasing defense investments was one of the main items on the summit agenda. Rutte said allies had made significant progress toward the goal of allocating 5 percent of gross domestic product to defense by 2035.<\/p>\n
He stressed that the target was not only about spending more, but also about ensuring that armed forces have the capabilities they need in a more dangerous world.<\/p>\n
Defense industry cooperation was another prominent topic at the Ankara Summit. More than 50 billion dollars in new procurement agreements were signed in a single day as part of the NATO Summit Defense Industry Forum.<\/p>\n
The summit declaration stated that allies committed to increasing collective production capacity, accelerating innovation and working more closely with the industrial sector.<\/p>\n
New steps on unmanned systems were also announced during the summit. Rutte said allies launched the \u201cNATO Drone Edge\u201d initiative. Under the initiative, 40 billion dollars is expected to be invested in unmanned systems over the next five years.<\/p>\n