‘Truly extraordinary': Trump gets royal welcome in Europe after NATO boss's gushing text
London: European leaders have arranged a royal welcome for US President Donald Trump, including an overnight stay at a Dutch palace, even as he wavers on whether America would come to their aid in a time of war.
In a day of outright flattery and calculated generosity, Trump was given a sudden upgrade at a pivotal defence summit in The Netherlands so he could stay with King Willem-Alexander at the palace, Huis ten Bosch, in The Hague.
But the president has startled observers at the NATO summit by casting doubt on the key principle of mutual defence, central to the American pact with European allies since 1949.
The president arrived at the summit after posting lavish praise from NATO general secretary Mark Rutte for his 'truly extraordinary' decision to bomb nuclear facilities in Iran.
The American attack has worried European leaders, with French President Emmanuel Macron warning it would increase the risk of a secret Iranian weapons program and British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer offering no clear endorsement for the bombings.
Rutte, however, heaped praise on Trump in a private message that the president later posted on his social media site, Truth Social, in an apparent attempt to show the depth of support for his decision.
'Congratulations and thank you for your decisive action in Iran, that was truly extraordinary and something no one else dared to do. It makes us safer,' Rutte wrote.
Crucially, the NATO chief also praised Trump for demanding European leaders promise to increase defence spending to 5 per cent of GDP – a pledge most countries are expected to endorse when the summit ends on Wednesday.
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