A turbulent NATO summit in the Turkish capital Ankara on Wednesday delivered a cascade of geopolitical shocks, with US President Donald Trump declaring the ceasefire with Iran effectively dead, branding the country's leadership "scum," and threatening devastating military strikes on civilian infrastructure — all while Volodymyr Zelenskyy walked away with a landmark win for Ukraine's air defences.
Trump Declares Iran Ceasefire 'Over' and Threatens Major Strikes
The most explosive moments of the day centred on Iran. Asked repeatedly whether the ceasefire — underpinned by a 14-point memorandum of understanding signed last month — was still intact, Trump was unambiguous.
"It's a very interesting question. To me, I think it's over. I don't want to deal with them," Trump said at his first press conference of the day. "They're scum. They're sick people. They're led by sick people."
Trump also labelled Iran "dirty players" for targeting commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz in violation of the ceasefire terms, and said pursuing diplomacy was "a waste of time." The remarks followed reports that Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had launched strikes against US military targets in Bahrain and Kuwait in retaliation for earlier American strikes on Iran.
The president's language grew increasingly stark as the day progressed. During his bilateral meeting with Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the summit, Trump previewed what he described as a potentially significant escalation, threatening to hit critical Iranian civilian infrastructure including electrical plants and desalination facilities — the latter supplying much of the country's drinking water.
"It may be a big attack, and it'll knock out a lot of stuff," Trump warned. On power plants, he said: "We'll take them out. I don't want to do that, but if we have to, we'll take them out." He described the prospect of striking desalination plants as the action he would "least like" to take, but declined to rule it out.
Trump also disclosed that US forces had already struck Kharg Island, Iran's critical oil export hub, overnight. "We attacked Kharg Island last night, knocked out a piece," he said, adding that further strikes on the facility were possible. He said he had instructed the military not to hit oil pipelines but to target "everything else." Analysts had warned when the earlier ceasefire deal was reached that its most contentious issues remained unresolved — a concern that now appears prescient. The ceasefire's collapse has been building for days as both sides traded accusations and strikes across the Gulf region.
Ukraine's Major Patriot Missile Manufacturing Breakthrough
Amid the chaos over Iran, one of the most consequential — and surprising — announcements of the day came during Trump's joint press conference with the Ukrainian president.
Trump revealed that Ukraine would soon receive a licence to manufacture Patriot missiles domestically, a development Zelenskyy has long sought as Russia continues to bombard Ukrainian cities with ballistic missiles. The Patriot PAC-3 interceptor system has proven highly effective against such attacks, but Ukraine has repeatedly complained it does not have enough of them. Each missile costs millions of dollars to produce.
In a characteristically unorthodox disclosure, Trump said a "little birdie" had told him about the licence — and then acknowledged that Lockheed Martin, the US defence giant that manufactures the PAC-3 system, had not yet been informed of the decision. "But that'll work out all right. I'm sure they will be thrilled," Trump said.
The announcement represents a significant shift in Ukraine's capacity for self-defence, potentially freeing it from dependence on allied stockpiles that have been strained by the protracted conflict. Ukraine has faced relentless aerial bombardment throughout the conflict, making domestic Patriot production a strategic priority.
NATO Reaffirms Unity and Commits to Billions in New Defence Spending
Despite the day's disorder, the Ankara summit produced a formal statement of alliance solidarity. The official 2026 Ankara Summit Declaration saw all 32 NATO member nations reaffirm their "ironclad commitment to collective defence" — a direct invocation of Article 5 of the alliance's founding treaty, which holds that an attack on one member constitutes an attack on all.
The declaration's language amounted to a firm signal that the United States remains a member of the alliance, notwithstanding Trump's repeated threats to withdraw over burden-sharing disputes. His core complaint — that too many NATO allies spend too little on defence — was partially addressed at the summit, with European allies and Canada committing to $US50 billion ($72.3 billion) in new defence procurements.
The commitment follows last year's pledge by NATO nations to reach defence spending of five per cent of GDP by 2035, a target that would require substantial increases from most members. Spain and Canada currently spend around two per cent of GDP on defence.
By the time the day's final press conferences had wrapped up in Ankara, the summit had covered enormous ground: a collapsing ceasefire, threats of large-scale strikes on civilian infrastructure, a surprise weapons manufacturing deal for Ukraine, and a renewed — if strained — pledge of Western solidarity. Whether the diplomatic architecture can hold under the weight of those pressures remains the central question heading into the days ahead.
