US PRESIDENT Donald Trump arrived in Ankara this afternoon for the latest Nato summit, as the transatlantic military alliance was announcing billions in arms deals in an attempt to appease the mercurial US leader.

Mr Trump, who has often complained that European allies have not spent enough on weapons of war, first sat down with Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a close ally who is hosting this year’s gathering and who warmly greeted the US president at a local air base and then an elaborate welcome ceremony.

“Sometimes you get along with the toughest people, like him,” Mr Trump said, gesturing to Mr Erdogan as the two sat down for their meeting.

Mr Trump repeatedly praised Turkey for its loyalty to the US, particularly during the US and Israel’s unprovoked war on Iran.

Earlier in the day, Nato showcased a series of military projects worth billions of dollars — a splurge that the alliance’s secretary-general, Mark Rutte, called “money well spent.”

Some of the projects will be paid for with funds from a system of cheap loans for “defence” purposes set up by the European Union, comprising up to $170 billion (£127bn) raised on capital markets.

“We need to ensure that we are translating our economic might into military capabilities, putting the cash to work from defence plans to drones, from money to missiles and interceptors,” Mr Rutte said.

Meanwhile, Mr Trump also said today that the US will lift sanctions on Turkey that were issued after Mr Erdogan’s government purchased a Russian missile defence system in 2019. The country was kicked out of the US’s F-35 fighter jet programme for that.

When asked about Turkey’s return to the F-35 system, Mr Trump said as he sat next to Mr Erdogan that “it’s certainly something we will consider.”

The move has angered Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is, of course, still wanted by the International Criminal Court for potential war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Speaking to Fox News Israeli on Monday, Mr Netanyahu urged the U.S. not to sell F-35 fighter jets to Turkey, claiming that Mr Erdogan “calls openly for the annihilation of Israel.”

He said selling the fighter jets to Turkey would “upset the power balance in the Middle East, which is ultimately guaranteed by Israeli air superiority and also, I think, by America’s posture in the Middle East.”