Finnish president to donate revolver gifted by Erdoğan to museum

A revolver presented to Finnish President Alexander Stubb by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will be transferred to a museum, the Office of the President of Finland told Yle.

According to the presidential office, the firearm was handed over to police immediately after it was received. Stubb later expressed a desire for the revolver to become part of a museum collection.

One of the options under consideration is the Military Museum of Finland, which collects artifacts related to the country’s military and firearms history.

Under Finnish firearms legislation, possessing a firearm requires a valid reason, such as participation in sport shooting. Had Stubb wished to keep the revolver personally, he would have needed to obtain a permit or have the weapon deactivated.

The revolver gifted to Finnish President Alexander Stubb was part of a broader set of personalized firearms presented by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to NATO leaders at the alliance's summit in Ankara on July 7-8, 2026.

These were vintage Gümüşay .357 Magnum revolvers, rare six-shot models produced in the 1990s by Turkish state-owned arms manufacturer MKE. 

Each was engraved with the recipient's name, presented in an elegant wooden display box featuring the Turkish flag and NATO logo, accompanied by live ammunition and a cleaning kit.

By Jeyhun Aghazada