Turkey Gifts NATO Leaders Personalized Pistols, Bullets and Liability Waivers

NATO leaders departed Turkey with an unusual diplomatic souvenir after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan presented each of them with a personalised revolver, complete with ammunition and special export paperwork.

While the gift was meant to showcase Turkey’s defence manufacturing capabilities, it also left several delegations grappling with firearms regulations before heading home.

The gift box contained a Gumusay .357 Magnum revolver engraved with the recipient’s name, a cleaning kit, ammunition and a certificate exempting the firearm from Turkish export controls. The presentation case also featured the Turkish flag, the NATO logo and a plaque describing the weapon as the country’s first domestically produced revolver.

Unusual gift creates logistical hurdles

Unlike traditional state gifts, the functioning firearm could not simply be packed into diplomatic luggage.

Several leaders left their revolvers in Ankara while officials worked through customs procedures and import regulations. Others sent the firearms to their embassies or decided they would eventually be displayed in museums rather than kept for personal possession.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer confirmed receiving the personalised revolver, while Spain said all NATO leaders were presented with identical models engraved with their names.

How leaders handled the gift

Countries adopted different approaches to dealing with the firearm:

• Belgium placed the revolver in the custody of airport police.
• Poland said its gift would remain under customs supervision until all formalities were completed.
• The Netherlands and Sweden transferred their revolvers to their embassies in Ankara, with Dutch authorities planning to deactivate theirs before import.
• Italy stored Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s revolver with other official state gifts.
• European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Greek officials said their firearms would likely be donated to military museums.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney injected some humour into the episode, saying his gift of maple syrup seemed modest compared to Erdogan’s revolver. Canadian officials later confirmed the firearm accompanying Carney had been deactivated before transport, while the ammunition remained in Turkey.

Promoting Turkey’s defence sector

The presentation was widely seen as a showcase of Turkey’s expanding defence industry, which has become a major pillar of the country’s exports and international outreach.

The Gumusay .357 Magnum, manufactured by state-owned defence company MKE in the 1990s, is considered a rare collector’s piece. Although Turkish manufacturers now primarily produce semi-automatic firearms, the revolver was selected as a symbol of the country’s domestic weapons industry and its growing profile in global defence markets.