German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and several other leaders participating in the NATO summit received live pistols with ammunition boxes as gifts from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who hosted the summit in the Turkish capital Ankara on the day before yesterday and yesterday.

In statements to the German news agency DPA, a spokesman for the German government said on Thursday: 'The pistol was handed over to the German embassy to complete its import into Germany in accordance with legal procedures, and then it will be recorded as part of the official gifts collection.'

The resigned British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was the first to reveal these gifts during his return trip from the summit, according to The Guardian and the Press Association. Reports stated that the name of each official who received the weapon was engraved on the pistol, and each piece was accompanied by an export permit signed by President Erdogan.

The pistol gifted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda at the NATO summit in Ankara (Reuters)

However, Starmer, according to reports, also left the pistol in Turkey to disable its firing mechanism (unloading its ammunition), because importing it into Britain would have violated the strict gun laws in place there.

Erdogan intended to highlight the Turkish defense industry, which has become an important tool for exports and foreign policy.

Photos released by the office of Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda showed what appears to be a 'Gümüşay 357 Magnum' pistol, a rare six-shot revolver produced by the Turkish arms manufacturer MKE in the 1990s.

The pistol was placed inside a wooden display box bearing the Turkish flag and the alliance's logo, alongside a plaque inscribed in Turkish and English: 'Gümüşay, the first revolver manufactured in our country.'

The spokesperson for Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said that all leaders received the same model, with each name engraved on it.

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever handed his briefcase to Brussels airport police to be secured in a safe.

One of the aides of Polish President Karol Nawrocki said in radio statements that his pistol is awaiting customs clearance at Warsaw Airport and will be kept in an appropriate place 'so that it is safe first, and second, respected as a gift.'

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