The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has closed out a two-day summit in Turkiye with a pledge of 70 billion euros ($80bn) in assistance for Ukraine’s fight against Russia as United States President Donald Trump projects optimism about the prospects for a future peace deal.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy joined leaders from all 32 member states in Ankara, where he engaged in an advocacy blitz for Kyiv and met with Trump.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listIn a declaration released as the meetings wrapped up, NATO said the allies “stand united in our unwavering support for Ukraine in defending its freedom, sovereignty, and territorial integrity”.“For 2026, Allies pledge €70 billion in military equipment, assistance and training for Ukraine and affirm their sovereign commitments to sustaining at least equivalent levels in 2027,” the statement said.Long-term support – the vast majority of which now comes from Europe and Canada – “must be equitable, predictable, and sustainable”, it added.The commitment came as Trump appeared enthusiastic about supporting Ukraine as he addressed reporters alongside Zelenskyy, a sharp departure from their highly publicised break last year.Russian President Vladimir Putin is “a difficult character”, Trump said before gesturing at Zelenskyy and saying he is also “a difficult character”.“It’s not the easiest, not the easiest thing,” the US president said of an eventual peace settlement. “There’s a lot of commitment, and there’s a lot of love of the countries and everything else. But I think we’ve made a lot of progress in the last couple of weeks.” Advertisement Trump also appeared to offer a boon to Ukraine in the form of US …
