NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte offered commendation to President Donald Trump during their meeting in the Oval Office, recognizing the president’s efforts to ensure NATO members increase their defense spending. This comes amid discussions surrounding Trump’s dedication to the NATO alliance and its principle of collective defense.
Rutte expressed appreciation for the push Trump has made to get alliance members to boost their defense budgets. He conveyed optimism by saying, “I think they want to work together with you in the run-up to the next summit to make sure that we will have a NATO, which is newly invigorated under your leadership.” The European Commission’s recent recommendation for 800 billion euros in defense spending by member countries, as well as increased commitments from the UK and Germany, were highlighted by Rutte as substantial developments.
Reflecting on these advancements, Rutte described the changes in defense pledges as “staggering.” However, he acknowledged that NATO still has areas to improve. These remarks came after Trump criticized NATO members for failing to allocate 2% of their GDP towards defense, an objective each member is expected to meet.
President Trump had previously questioned the United States’ dedication to NATO’s Article 5, which states that an attack on one member is an attack on all. Acknowledging his role in encouraging countries to meet the defense spending benchmark, Trump noted that many members had reached the spending target, attributing these successes to the threats he had made during his first presidential term, though he mentioned the 2% goal was insufficient.
Trump stated, “I just said, we’re not going to be involved with you if you’re not going to pay,” explaining that his firm stance led to a surge in financial commitments, thereby strengthening NATO. Outgoing Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg had previously credited Trump for this increase in defense spending by NATO members.
In addition to defense spending, Trump and Rutte discussed a proposed 30-day ceasefire to address the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Special envoy Steve Witkoff was engaged in talks with senior Russian officials in Moscow to explore the ceasefire proposal.
Trump conveyed cautious optimism concerning Russian President Vladimir Putin’s earlier comments indicating a potential openness to a ceasefire, contingent upon certain conditions. The U.S. president reiterated his willingness to engage in dialogue with Putin, stressing the urgency to cease hostilities in Ukraine.
Commenting on Putin’s declarations, Trump said, “He put out a very promising statement but it wasn’t complete.” Trump expressed hope for Russia’s cooperation and warned that failure to engage would be a setback for global stability.
