logo
Can flattery save Nato? Rutte charms Trump with clever defence spending deal

Can flattery save Nato? Rutte charms Trump with clever defence spending deal

Malay Mail10 hours ago

THE HAGUE, June 24 — When former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte took over as Nato chief last year his primary task was clear: keep Donald Trump on board should he come back to power.
Now, on the eve of hosting his first alliance summit as boss in his hometown, The Hague, the veteran political operator seems on the verge of delivering.
With a combination of diplomatic finessing and a large dose of flattery, Rutte looks set to make the volatile US leader happy with a carefully crafted deal that meets Trump's demand for Nato allies to spend five per cent of GDP on defence.
'He's been quite masterful in keeping the alliance together in a very difficult and sensitive period,' a senior Nato diplomat said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Rutte's tour de force was cooking up a compromise on spending that allows Trump to claim victory by hitting his headline five-per cent figure, while in reality setting the bar lower.
The agreement sees countries promise to spend 3.5 per cent of GDP on core military spending, while the other 1.5 per cent goes to a looser array of areas like infrastructure and cybersecurity.
Getting a successful outcome for Nato, the transatlantic alliance forged during the Cold War, was by no means a given when Trump stormed back into the White House threatening allies he would not protect them if they did not cough up.
As Washington berated Ukraine, cosied up to Russia and opened the door to pulling forces from Europe, it set alarm bells ringing over the future of an alliance founded on US might.
Rutte's strategy has seemed relatively simple: never criticise or contradict the notoriously sensitive former reality TV star.
Pain from Spain
When Trump suggested Ukraine caused Russia's invasion: silence. When he yelled at Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office: no pushback. When he threatened not to protect allies: nothing to see here.
Instead, according to Rutte, Trump has been absolutely right to demand a quick end to the Ukraine war, has not called into question Nato's mutual defence ethos, and has actually made the alliance stronger by forcing allies to spend more.
All that courting appears to have paid off.
Diplomats say Rutte is one of only a handful of European leaders Trump willingly picks up the phone to and that the two text each other.
'Clearly the job is to keep the United States engaged as far as you can, even if it means that you have to sound a bit like Donald Trump occasionally,' said Jamie Shea, a former senior Nato official now with the Chatham House think tank.
'So as long as that's the situation, I think allies will sort of turn a blind eye in Europe, at least to the occasional uses of Trumpian means and themes' by Rutte.
That does not mean European allies have always been comfortable with Rutte's performance – with some at times accusing him of going too far to please Trump.
That very nearly ended up blowing up in Rutte's face when Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez threw a last-minute spanner in the works by baulking at the spending deal.
In the end though, Rutte again showed his diplomatic chops and managed to smooth over the kerfuffle with another sleight of hand that allowed all sides to claim they got what they wanted.
'Hats off to Rutte's artistry,' said another Nato diplomat. 'Once again we saw his touch.' — AFP

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Meeting Trump, Turkiye's Erdogan hails Iran-Israel truce
Meeting Trump, Turkiye's Erdogan hails Iran-Israel truce

New Straits Times

time41 minutes ago

  • New Straits Times

Meeting Trump, Turkiye's Erdogan hails Iran-Israel truce

THE HAGUE: Turkiye's Recep Tayyip Erdogan hailed the Iran-Israel ceasefire and urged "close dialogue" to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict, as he held talks with US President Donald Trump on the sidelines of a NATO summit late Tuesday. The Turkish president "expressed his satisfaction with the ceasefire achieved between Israel and Iran through President Trump's efforts, hoping it would be permanent," his office said. In the early hours of Tuesday morning, Trump announced that Iran and Israel had agreed to a staggered ceasefire that would bring about an "official end" to their 11-day conflict. The move came after the US joined Israel's campaign on Sunday, striking key nuclear sites, prompting a carefully coordinated Iranian retaliation against a US base in Qatar late Monday – which appeared to bring the confrontation to a close. Erdogan also stressed the need for Ankara and Washington to work closely to end the war in Gaza and the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The Turkish president "emphasised the importance of close dialogue in ending the humanitarian tragedy in Gaza as soon as possible and in peacefully resolving the Russia-Ukraine war," it said. Erdogan also called for increased defence industry cooperation with the United States, which he said could significantly boost trade between them. "Advancing cooperation in the defence industry would facilitate achieving the goal of a US$100 billion trade volume," he said.

Official predicts 100 AI breakthroughs
Official predicts 100 AI breakthroughs

The Star

time2 hours ago

  • The Star

Official predicts 100 AI breakthroughs

Beijing: China's advantages in developing artificial intelligence (AI) are about to unleash a wave of innovation that will generate more than 100 DeepSeek-like breakthroughs in the coming 18 months, according to a former top official. The new software products 'will fundamentally change the nature and the tech nature of the whole Chinese economy,' Zhu Min, who was previously a deputy governor of the People's Bank of China, said during the World Economic Forum in Tianjin yesterday. Zhu, who also served as the deputy managing director at the International Monetary Fund, sees a transformation made possible by harnessing China's pool of engineers, massive consumer base and supportive government policies. The bullish take on China's AI future promises no letup in the competition for dominance in cutting-edge technologies with the United States, just as the world's two biggest economies are also locked in a trade war. The United States sees China as a key rival in the field of AI, especially after DeepSeek shocked the global tech industry in January with its low-cost but powerful model. In addition to efforts to prevent China from securing advanced semiconductor manufacturing equipment, Washington is blocking Chinese companies from acquiring Nvidia Corp's high-end AI chips for training, citing national security concerns. Beijing is now pinning its hopes on domestic tech giants like Huawei Technologies Co when it comes to advanced chipmaking. The emergence of DeepSeek triggered a rally in China's tech stocks, fuelling optimism over Chinese competitiveness despite tensions over trade with the Trump administration and economic challenges at home. Bloomberg Economics estimates the contribution of high-tech to China's gross domestic product (GDP) climbed to about 15% last year – from near 14% a year earlier – and could exceed 18% in 2026. Despite a tariff truce negotiated a month ago with the United States, American levies are still at high levels, with a more lasting deal still in question. Zhu said the United States will likely see inflation pick up starting in August, as it takes some time for tariffs to feed through to the economy and for companies to use up stockpiles they accumulated before Trump hiked duties. 'The uncertainty brought by US tariff policy is an important factor that may lead to negative growth in global trade this year,' Zhu told reporters on the sidelines of the forum. 'The entire trade industrial chain has begun to slow, investments has begun to stop, so the impact is greater than the actual tariff rate.' The World Economic Forum meeting in Tianjin, also known as 'Summer Davos', has attracted global business executives and world leaders. Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh are scheduled to speak at the three-day event. Chinese Premier Li Qiang is expected to address the conference during the opening plenary today and meet with participants. Despite a tariff truce negotiated a month ago with the United States, American levies are still at high levels, with a more lasting deal still in question. Analysts polled by Bloomberg forecast GDP will slip to 4.5% this year, significantly below the official target of around 5%. It expanded 5.4% in the first quarter. 'The uncertainty brought by US tariff policy is an important factor that may lead to negative growth in global trade this year,' Zhu told reporters on the sidelines of the forum. 'The entire trade industrial chain has begun to slow, investments has begun to stop, so the impact is greater than the actual tariff rate.' Zhu said the United States will likely see inflation pick up starting in August, as it takes some time for tariffs to feed through to the economy and for companies to use up stockpiles they accumulated before Trump hiked duties. Despite shocks from abroad, China's GDP likely grew faster than 5% in the second quarter, according to Huang Yiping, a member of the Chinese central bank's monetary policy committee. Speaking on another panel at the Tianjin forum, he pointed to the economy's solid performance in April and May. But despite strong retail sales in May, when they grew at the fastest pace since December 2023, Huang said China still needs to address the issue of insufficient consumption. — Bloomberg

US strikes may have set back Iran nuclear program only months, sources say
US strikes may have set back Iran nuclear program only months, sources say

The Star

time3 hours ago

  • The Star

US strikes may have set back Iran nuclear program only months, sources say

Satellite image over Fordow, before the U.S. struck the underground nuclear facility, near Qom, Iran, June 2, 2025. 2025 Planet Labs PBC via REUTERS/File Photo WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A preliminary U.S. intelligence assessment has determined that U.S. strikes over the weekend on Iranian nuclear facilities have set back Tehran's program by only a matter of months, three sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters. The initial report was prepared by the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Pentagon's main intelligence arm and one of 18 U.S. intelligence agencies, said two of the sources, who requested anonymity to discuss classified matters. The classified assessment is at odds with the statements of President Donald Trump and high-ranking U.S. officials - including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. They have said the weekend strikes, which used a combination of bunker-busting bombs and more conventional weapons, essentially eliminated Iran's nuclear program. Trump has said the attacks were necessary to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. Iran denies it is seeking such a weapon and says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes. Hegseth on Sunday said that the strikes had "obliterated" Iran's nuclear ambitions, while Trump said Iran's crucial nuclear sites had been "completely and fully obliterated." Assessing the damage at the Fordow, Isfahan and Natanz nuclear sites is expected to be a difficult task, and the DIA is not the only agency tasked with the job. One source said the assessment was not universally accepted and had generated significant disagreement. A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the U.S. did not know the extent of the damage yet. Still, the initial assessment indicated the strikes may not have been nearly as successful as the Trump administration has claimed. One of the sources said Iran's enriched uranium stocks had not been eliminated, and in fact the country's nuclear program may have been set back only a month or two. The Pentagon disputed the notion that the damage to Iran's nuclear program was minor, though it did not dispute that the DIA assessment exists. "Based on everything we have seen — and I've seen it all — our bombing campaign obliterated Iran's ability to create nuclear weapons," Hegseth said in a statement provided to Reuters. "Our massive bombs hit exactly the right spot at each target—and worked perfectly. The impact of those bombs is buried under a mountain of rubble in Iran; so anyone who says the bombs were not devastating is just trying to undermine the President and the successful mission." The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But in a statement to CNN, which first reported the intelligence assessment, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the conclusion was incorrect. "This alleged assessment is flat-out wrong," Leavitt said, according to CNN. "Everyone knows what happens when you drop fourteen 30,000 pound bombs perfectly on their targets: total obliteration." Initial military assessments can change as more information comes to light and it is not uncommon for opinions to vary across different U.S. intelligence agencies. Democrats have previously said Trump's claims that the weekend strikes eliminated or seriously set back Iran's nuclear program were not yet backed by evidence. "There's zero evidence that I've seen that the nuclear program was completely and totally obliterated as Donald Trump has claimed," House of Representatives Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said on Monday. Classified briefings on the matter for members of the House of Representatives and Senate were canceled on Tuesday. (Reporting by Jonathan Landay and Idrees Ali in Washington and Gram Slattery in The Hague; Additional reporting by Phil Stewart; Editing by Don Durfee and Cynthia Osterman)

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store