ISTANBUL

European stock markets ended Wednesday with a mixed course, while the defense stocks gained after US President Donald Trump asked NATO countries to shoot down Russian aircraft over alliance territory and expressed optimism about Ukraine's chances of winning the war with Russia.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 was down 0.19%, or 1.07 points, to close at 553.88, while its Aerospace and Defense index gained 1.39%.

France's CAC 40 fell 0.57% to 7,827.45 and Italy's FTSE MIB declined 0.13% to 42,423.12.

Germany's DAX 40 index was up 0.23% to 23,666.81 points, and the UK's FTSE 100 rose 0.29% to 9,250.43.

Spain's IBEX 35 also increased 0.24% to end the midweek at 15,194.6.

Meanwhile, demand for defense stocks increased again after Trump defended the downing of Russian aircraft over NATO territory and expressed greater optimism about Ukraine's chances of winning the war with Russia.

Trump said NATO nations should shoot down Russian planes “violating their territory,” as he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of a UN summit.

“Yes, I do,” Trump said when a reporter asked if NATO countries should open fire if Russian aircraft enter their airspace.

On Ukraine, he wrote on the US social media company Truth Social: "I think Ukraine, with the support of the European Union, is in a position to fight and win all of Ukraine back in its original form."

The shares of the German defense firm Rheinmetall gained 3.5%, British BAE Systems gained 1.64%, and French Dassault Aviation added 1.34%.

Meanwhile, the Ifo Business Confidence Index in Germany, which stood at 88.9 points last month, fell to 87.7 points in September due to the deterioration in company executives' current situation and future expectations. This interrupted a six-month upward trend in the index.

The euro/dollar parity fell 0.69% to 1.1733 as of 1700GMT.