Erdogan pushes alliance cohesion

Turkey expects next month's NATO summit in Ankara to emphasise alliance unity, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday, calling for the lifting of restrictions on defence trade and for Ankara's involvement in initiatives to bolster European security.

Ankara will host 32 NATO leaders, as well as officials from the alliance's partners in the Gulf and Asia-Pacific region, on July 7-8, amid tensions within the alliance over burden-sharing, defence spending, and U.S. complaints about allies' lack of involvement in re-opening the Strait of Hormuz during the U.S. and Israeli war with Iran.

"Our main expectation from the summit is to achieve results that guard allies' national security sensitivities, strengthen the spirit of alliance solidarity and unity," Erdogan said at an event for parliamentarians from NATO members in Istanbul.

He said the allies would also discuss the wars in Iran, Ukraine, and Gaza during their meeting, adding that Ankara expected more from allies to support its efforts to end the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party's (PKK) more than 40-year insurgency, and in involving Turkey in European defence plans.

"If we want to combat the tests we are facing, we must lift restrictions on defence industry trade while carrying out burden sharing in a balanced and fair manner," he said, adding Turkey was doing its part in terms of reaching NATO's defence spending targets.

"However, despite our contributions, it is also true that the indispensable benefits Turkey provides for European security are being overlooked in certain situations. As a nation that has a say in the development of the alliance's European pillar, we have the will to join all defence and security initiatives in the continent," he added.

Turkey has long complained of U.S. and European restrictions or embargoes on defence industry trade — imposed over regional policy differences and Ankara's ties with Russia. It has said these damage the spirit of the alliance and hinder development.