“Direct” to the summit: A showcase for NATO, a bill for the public
it has emerged that, as part of the nato mobilisation effort – which involved giving the façades of dilapidated houses in ankara a facelift – hundreds of thousands of lira in public funds were also spent via the “direct procurement” method. it has been learnt that the general directorate of forestry (ogm) has commenced a 1.2 million tl afforestation project for the summit, whilst painting and landscaping work worth 498,000 tl has been carried out at the ministry of labour’s premises.
it has emerged that, as part of the nato mobilisation effort – which involved giving the façades of dilapidated houses in ankara a facelift – hundreds of thousands of lira in public funds were also spent via the “direct procurement” method. it has been learnt that the general directorate of forestry (ogm) has commenced a 1.2 million tl afforestation project for the summit, whilst painting and landscaping work worth 498,000 tl has been carried out at the ministry of labour’s premises.
A veritable mobilisation has been declared ahead of the NATO Summit to be held in Ankara on 7–8 July.
Ankara’s appearance has been spruced up for the summit. The external facades of old buildings along the protocol route at Esenboğa Airport have been painted. It was stated that the works were carried out “to conceal the neglected appearance of the houses”.
In addition to the facades of the dilapidated houses being spruced up, some roads along the route have also been resurfaced. Wooden barriers were also erected to prevent foreign delegations from seeing the unsightly conditions on certain roads they would be travelling along.
DIRECT PROCUREMENT
It has been reported that the public sector spent millions of lira via the Direct Procurement method as part of the NATO Summit preparations. BirGün scrutinised the expenditure made via Direct Procurement from the public budget under the pretext of the summit. It was observed that the public sector purchased goods and services through five separate Direct Procurement transactions in May and June.
FIRST EXPENDITURE IN FEBRUARY
The first public body to resort to the Direct Procurement method for the NATO Summit was the Ministry of Labour and Social Security. It was learnt that on 23 February 2026, the Ministry began “preparations for the NATO Summit” within its premises in the Emek district. As part of the preparations, it was reported that new walls were erected in certain areas of the compound, the railings at A Barracks were painted, and LED lights were installed on the building’s external facades. The Ministry paid 498,000 TL for the services procured via the Direct Procurement method.
SUMMIT RUSH
Alongside the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, the General Directorate of Forestry (OGM) has also drawn attention for opening its coffers wide for the summit. The Directorate, which has been accused of showing weaknesses in its response to the forest fires that have reduced Türkiye’s ‘lungs’ to ashes due to a lack of equipment, has carried out a reforestation campaign for the NATO Summit, as reflected in the Direct Procurement records.
The General Directorate of Forestry’s expenditure on three separate direct procurement contracts for “the procurement of sapling transport services for afforestation sites to be organised as part of the NATO Summit” was calculated at 415,000 TL.
The Directorate’s expenditure on the summit was not limited to 415,000 TL. In June, the General Directorate of Forestry paid 801,325 TL to purchase fencing materials for use in the reforested areas.
Note: This article is translated from the original article titled “Doğrudan” zirveye: NATO'ya vitrin, kamuya fatura, published in BirGün newspaper on July 1, 2026.