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Former British minister Tobias Ellwood said the NATO Ankara summit hosted by Türkiye on July 7-8 showed the country's rising status and demonstrated its capacity as a host, while also pointing to Ankara's role in future alliance debates.
Ellwood, who attended the summit and previously served as a minister of state at Britain's Ministry of Defense and as minister of state for the Middle East and Africa at the Foreign Office, spoke to Anadolu Agency (AA) in London after the Ankara summit.
Congratulating Türkiye for hosting the summit, Ellwood said the organization had been carried out successfully and that participants were well received.
"I think it was good in terms of showing people Türkiye's rising status and that this is a very capable, very pleasant place to be," Ellwood said.
Ellwood stated that NATO faces several fundamental challenges, bringing questions about the alliance's core function back to the agenda.
While NATO was originally designed to counter conventional state-on-state warfare, a clear and understood mission, Ellwood noted that emerging security threats now raise entirely different questions.
"That was straightforward, but today, when it comes to cyber or space attacks, questions arise about how they affect NATO's Article 5," Ellwood said.
He emphasized that international cooperation in space remains a critical issue, noting that individual countries are currently moving in separate directions.
"For that reason, the evolution of warfare is challenging NATO, its foundational principles, and how the alliance functions as a deterrent force," he explained.
Turning to regional dynamics, Ellwood underlined Türkiye’s vital role within NATO, noting that the country is frequently viewed as the alliance's strategic southern flank.
He stressed that the question of NATO’s future direction remains paramount.
"I believe Türkiye has an important role to play, but this is a discussion for the future," Ellwood said.
Ellwood described the close relationship between President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and U.S. President Donald Trump as "remarkable" and said the question of whether this relationship could be used more effectively was important.
He said Erdogan could help guide Trump "to a better point," arguing that Trump sometimes uses statements and takes steps that create a "disruptive" effect within the alliance.
"I think Erdogan can be quietly influential over Trump because Trump respects him," Ellwood said. "King Charles III also respects Trump in the same way. There is a remarkable relationship between them."
Ellwood also noted that a Defense Industry Forum was held as part of the NATO Ankara summit and said the event displayed Türkiye's progress in areas such as drones and similar technologies.
He said Türkiye had made progress in the field and should be congratulated.
"Türkiye should be congratulated. You have really made great progress," Ellwood said.
Ellwood added that the next key question would be how Türkiye's defense systems could be aligned with other NATO countries in terms of common use and interoperability.
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