Rutte Says NATO Will Do ‘What’s Necessary’ to Defend Turkey

Turkey’s role inside NATO is under renewed focus as Mark Rutte praises its defense buildup and former envoy Ümit Yardım warns Ankara’s balancing act with Russia is growing harder to sustain. Make us preferred on Google Share Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn Bluesky Email Copy Copied This handout photograph taken and released by Turkish Presidential Press Office on April 22, 2026, shows Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at the Presidential Complex in Ankara. (Photo by Handout / TURKISH PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE / AFP) Content Share Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn Bluesky Email Copy Copied Flip Make us preferred on Google NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said on Wednesday that the alliance would do “what’s necessary” to defend its members, including Turkey, after intercepting four missiles fired from Iran that entered Turkish airspace in recent weeks, AFP reported. NATO forces shot down ballistic missiles fired from Iran on four separate occasions, prompting the alliance to deploy a new Patriot missile battery at Incirlik Air Base in southern Turkey. Follow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official . “Iran is spreading terror and chaos, and you feel this prominently here in Turkey,” Rutte told journalists during a visit to Aselsan, Turkey’s largest defense electronics company. “NATO is prepared for such threats and will always do what is necessary to defend Turkey and all others. And we cannot do it alone,” he added. Rutte’s visit comes ahead of a NATO leaders’ summit scheduled for July in Ankara. Praising Turkey’s advances in the defense sector, Rutte said: “We can learn a lot from what Turkey is doing here.” “This is needed because we live in a more dangerous world,” he said. “That means we need strong defenses to protect our security.” Rutte added that “Turkey has undergone a defense industrial revolution. I could truly say it has been a revolution in recent years.” Former Turkish Ambassador to NATO Ümit Yardım told Kyiv Post that Rutte’s visit comes at a moment when Ankara is seeking to re-establish itself as a central actor within the alliance. Other Topics of Interest Norwegian F-35s Intercept Russian Il-38 Surveillance Plane The Norwegian military described it as a “routine” mission when two F-35 fighters were sent to intercept a Russian maritime patrol aircraft approaching the country’s airspace. “That is another important aspect for Ankara. Turkey is one of NATO’s oldest members and a signatory to the alliance’s strategic documents identifying Russia as its main adversary. At the same time, Ankara is still trying to balance its policy between NATO and Russia,” Yardım said in an interview with Kyiv Post. “I do not think that balance can be sustained for long. It is becoming more difficult every day to reconcile close ties with Russia with Turkey’s status as a NATO member,” he said. Still, Yardım said, the most immediate issues for Turkey remain the Middle East, Ukraine, and the future of relations between the United States and other NATO members. He added that defense spending would also remain a major internal alliance issue, particularly the debate over the 5% spending target pushed by US President Donald Trump. In his meeting with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Rutte highlighted Turkey’s contribution to the alliance and discussed preparations for the upcoming summit in Ankara. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization since 1995. Its international market reach of 97% outside of Ukraine makes it truly Ukraine’s Global – and most reliable – Voice.