French president Emmanuel Macron speaks at the NATO summit
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25/06/2025
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France 24
37 minutes ago
- France 24
NATO's Trump flattery has paid off for now – but the alliance might still be in trouble
Lavishing praise, playing the royal card and copying his slogans – NATO pulled out all the stops to keep US President Donald Trump happy and hold the alliance together at a summit in The Hague. Far from the tense meetings of Trump's first term, much of the annual summit in The Hague seemed catered to the impulses and worldviews of the Republican president whose 'America First' foreign policy ethos downplays the importance and influence of multilateral coalitions. The plan came off, although it largely avoided tough topics of vital importance to NATO such as the war in Ukraine, Russia strategy and a likely drawdown of US troops in Europe. Sooner or later, NATO will have to deal with them too. As NATO boss Mark Rutte had planned, the main summit outcomes were a vow by the allies to heed Trump's call to spend 5 percent of GDP on defence – a big increase on the current 2 percent target – and a renewed US commitment to NATO's mutual defence pact. That is a far cry from a few months ago, when transatlantic ties were so tense that Friedrich Merz, now Germany 's chancellor, wondered openly after his election win whether NATO would exist in its current form by the time of the Hague summit. Alliance with 'daddy' issues? NATO leaders flatter Trump to keep US on board 44:42 There was nothing subtle about NATO's strategy to keep Trump on board. Rutte gushed with compliments in a message to Trump, made public by the US president as he flew to The Hague. "You will achieve something NO American president in decades could get done," the former Dutch prime minister said in his message, putting some of his words in capitals like Trump. "Europe is going to pay in a BIG way, as they should, and it will be your win." Right before the summit, in another sign of chumminess with Trump, Rutte reacted to the US president's comments berating Iran and Israel by saying that "daddy has to sometimes use strong language". Given Trump's threats to quit NATO in his first term and not to protect allies who failed to spend enough on defence, the stakes for NATO have been high. 46:46 Most NATO members see Russia as an increasingly direct threat to their security following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine and know they would struggle badly to defend themselves against attack without their nuclear-armed superpower ally. After the summit, Trump's previously harsh rhetoric on NATO was replaced by something very different. "I left here saying that these people really love their countries. It's not a rip-off, and we're here to help them, protect them," he told reporters. Trump only criticised Spain for not signing up to the new defence spending target and said it would pay up another way – in its trade relations with the United States. Many European nations will find it tough economically to meet the target, but that issue was left for another day. Charm offensive As part of NATO's Hague charm offensive, Trump was granted the rare honour of staying overnight at the ornate royal palace of Dutch King Willem-Alexander before the summit. The king hosted a three-course meal for leaders prepared by 20 chefs and served by 18 footmen in the baroque 17th century "Orange Hall" in the Huis ten Bosch palace. At the start of the summit, other NATO leaders lined up to praise Trump. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda suggested the alliance adopt the motto "Make NATO Great Again". Rutte kept the summit short and simple, minimising the risks of any blow-ups with Trump. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had to settle for a seat at the pre-summit dinner rather than the main meeting, although he held a separate meeting with Trump after the summit. The summit's final statement ran to just five paragraphs – compared with 38 in the text from last year's leaders' meeting in Washington. It does not explicitly describe Russia's military action in Ukraine as a war or invasion, nor does it repeat or reaffirm a previous pledge that Ukraine will one day join the alliance. By focusing on reaffirming commitments to NATO and the new spending pledge, it papered over major differences between Washington and many European allies on Russia and Ukraine. To the discomfort of many Europeans, Trump has taken a more conciliatory stance with Moscow and been less supportive of Kyiv than his predecessor Joe Biden as he seeks to end the war. While such diplomatic fudges may hold NATO together for now, it will be hard for the alliance to function effectively if there is a major long-term difference between the United States and Europe on a question as fundamental as how to handle Russia. "A NATO summit that essentially ignores the war that is still raging in Ukraine should worry all of us," said Julianne Smith, who served as the US ambassador to NATO under the Biden administration. Peter Bator, Slovakia 's former ambassador to NATO, said "we have just missed an opportunity to send a strategic message to the ruler in the Kremlin. And it will cost us in our security". NATO officials will now be watching to see whether Trump's newfound enthusiasm for the alliance is reflected in his administration's ongoing review of US military posture, as Europe relies heavily on US forces for its security. European leaders say they are committed to taking on more of that responsibility but they are anxious to ensure any transfer is done in an orderly and gradual way. "You can feel the anxiety when talking to senior European officials about this," said Oana Lungescu, distinguished fellow at the Royal United Services Institute and former NATO spokesperson.
France 24
an hour ago
- France 24
NATO 76 years on: Grovel, grovel to 'reaffirm fundamental American commitment to European security'
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LeMonde
an hour ago
- LeMonde
Trump triumphant after NATO leaders agree on defense spending hike
NATO leaders agreed on a massive hike in defense spending Wednesday, June 25, after pressure from US President Donald Trump, and expressed their "ironclad commitment" to come to each other's aid if attacked. The 32 leaders endorsed a final summit statement saying: "Allies commit to invest 5% of GDP annually on core defense requirements as well as defense- and security-related spending by 2035 to ensure our individual and collective obligations." The show of unity vindicated NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte's billing of the summit as "transformational," even though it papered over divisions. Trump called the spending boost "something that no one really thought possible. And they said, 'You did it, sir. You did it.' Well, I don't know if I did it, but I think I did." Spain had already officially announced that it cannot meet the target, and others have voiced reservations, but the investment pledge includes a review of spending in 2029 – after the next US presidential elections – to monitor progress and reassess the security threat posed by Russia. The leaders also underlined their "ironclad commitment" to NATO's collective security guarantee – "that an attack on one is an attack on all." Ahead of the summit, Trump had again raised doubts over whether the United States would defend its allies. The spending hike requires each countries to spend billions of dollars. It comes as the United States – NATO's biggest-spending member – shifts its attention away from Europe to focus on security priorities elsewhere, notably in the Middle East and Indo-Pacific. Spain had called the new spending target and 2035 deadline "unreasonable." Belgium signaled that it would not get there either, and Slovakia said it reserves the right to decide its own defense spending. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez stood conspicuously aside from other leaders in the summit family photo. After the meeting, he said that Spain can execute NATO's defense plans by spending only 2% of gross domestic product on defense. Partner service "In today's summit, NATO wins and Spain wins something very important for our society, which is security and the welfare state," Sánchez said. Trump lashed out at Spain after the meeting. "They want to stay at 2%. I think it's terrible," he said. "You know, what we're going to do? We're negotiating with Spain on a trade deal. We're going to make them pay twice as much." Along with Spain, many other European countries face major economic challenges, and Trump's global tariff war could make it even harder for America's allies to reach their targets. Some countries are already squeezing welfare and foreign aid spending to channel extra funds into their military budgets. Russia's neighbors lead the pack in boosting spending Other countries closer to the borders of Russia and Ukraine – Poland, the three Baltic states and Nordic countries – have committed to the 5% goal, as have NATO's European heavyweights Britain, France, Germany and the Netherlands. In their statement, the leaders said they were united "in the face of profound security threats and challenges, in particular the long-term threat posed by Russia." It had been feared that Trump would object to that assessment, which European governments need to justify higher spending. Trump has been reluctant to support Ukraine in its war against Russia's full-scale invasion. "We stand by Ukraine in its pursuit of peace and will continue to support Ukraine on its irreversible path to NATO membership," Rutte said. The Trump administration has vetoed Ukraine's bid to join NATO for the foreseeable future. Finnish President Alexander Stubb said the agreement "is a big win, I think, for both President Trump and I think it's also a big win for Europe." He told reporters that "we're witnessing the birth of a new NATO, which means a more balanced NATO." He said it would take nations "back to the defense expenditure levels of the Cold War." NATO countries started to cut their military budgets in safer times after the Berlin Wall collapsed in 1989. In a fresh take on Trump's MAGA movement, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda said: "We should choose a motto, 'make NATO great again.'" After Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the NATO allies agreed to make 2% of GDP the minimum spending level. Last year, 22 countries were expected to hit that target, up from just three a decade ago. US decision on forces in Europe expected in coming months In The Hague, the allies endorsed a major revamp of their spending targets. They upped the ante for what NATO calls "core defense spending" to 3.5%, while changing how it's counted to include providing military support to Ukraine. To hit Trump's 5% demand, the deal set a second target of 1.5% of GDP for a broader range of defense-related spending, such as improving roads, bridges, ports and airfields so that armies can deploy more quickly, countering cyber and hybrid attack measures, or preparing societies to deal with future conflicts. "This declaration is historic. We are 32 allies supporting that ambition, which is huge," said Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre. "We have been struggling to get above 2% and now we said 3.5%, which is necessary in order to reach our capabilities." Extra funds will also be needed should the Trump administration announce a draw-down of forces in Europe, where around 84,000 US troops are based, leaving European allies to plug any security gaps. The Pentagon is expected to announce its intentions in coming months.
