ANKARA: US President Donald Trump lashed out at Nato allies on Wednesday at a summit in Ankara, as the fallout from his war with Iran threatened to overshadow the key gathering. With tensions peaking after an overnight flare-up between US and Iranian forces, Trump declared the Iran ceasefire was "over", then took aim at Nato allies who failed to back his campaign against Tehran. And he insisted he still wanted Greenland, calling European resistance to his stance a "big problem". "I'm very upset with Nato.. because of what they did with Greenland, and.. because of the fact that they didn't want to help us with the number one state sponsor of terror, that's Iran," he said.
Trump singled out Spain for particular criticism calling it a "terrible partner in Nato". "Spain is a wasted cause. We don't want to do any trade business with Spain anymore," he said, dragging up a bitter row that also touches on Madrid's defence spending, urging his Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to "cut it off".
And he raked up more sensitive territory by reiterating his desire for Nato member Denmark's territory of Greenland. "Greenland is a big problem for us," he told reporters, saying it was "very important for the United States, but it's not important for Denmark". "We need it for protection of the world, not just the United States.. It doesn't help Denmark, but it helps us." Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen had earlier issued a terse response to Trump's remarks a day earlier, saying: "Greenland is, of course, not for sale."
Nato chief Mark Rutte had earlier sought to shore up confidence in Washington's "complete commitment" to the military alliance as anxious allies readied for a face-to-face meeting with the mercurial US leader. As he landed in Turkiye on Tuesday, Trump was effusive in his praise for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, highlighting their "chemistry" in remarks that contrasted sharply with his lingering bitterness with European allies. The summit comes at a fraught time for the 77-year-old transatlantic alliance, with Trump demanding members make good on a pledge to ramp up defence spending as Washington takes a step back from Europe.
Nato allies unveiled tens of billions in new arms contracts on Tuesday in a bid to prove they were making good on a pledge to hike defence spending. "Yesterday was a great success," Rutte said on Wednesday, saying allies were "delivering" by moving to take more responsibility for the defence of their continent in the face of Russia. "This is a big win for the American president."
With Nato keen to focus the US leader's attention on its surging defence budgets, stalled efforts to halt the Ukraine war were also back on the agenda, with Trump saying he believed both sides wanted to end the fighting. "I think they both want to make a deal," said Trump, who will meet Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky later on Wednesday. With negotiations at an impasse, Trump spoke with Russia's Vladimir Putin before flying to Turkiye and was to "follow up" with him after meeting Zelensky, a US official said.
President Donald Trump told a Nato summit that the United States wanted to "remain" with the alliance, a source at inside the closed-door session said, despite his earlier anger at European allies over the Iran war. Trump told the meeting: "We want to remain with you," the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Nato leaders reaffirmed on their "ironclad commitment" to the mutual assistance clause enshrined in Article 5 of the military alliance's treaty, according to the final declaration of their Ankara summit. "We, the heads of state and government of the North Atlantic Alliance, have gathered in Ankara to reaffirm our ironclad commitment to our collective defence under Article 5... An attack on one is an attack on all," it said.
Meanwhile, The UK government will lead a coalition of around a dozen European countries to step up funding for the next generation of long-range missiles designed to protect Europe, the UK government said. The premier would "convene around a dozen European partners at the summit today to launch the new initiative, which is expected to announce that allies will spend $50 billion (£37 billion) over the next 10 years to develop deep precision strike capabilities to bolster defence and deterrence across the alliance", his Downing Street office said in a statement. — AFP
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