Donald Trump refused to commit to NATO’s ‘collective defence’ clause in unsettling comments to allies ahead of today’s summit in the Hague.
‘Depends on your definition,’ he told journalists in comments sure to rattle the European allies he dined with upon arrival in the Netherlands.
‘There’s numerous definitions of Article Five. I’m committed to being their friend.’
Article Five is a founding principle of the NATO military alliance, requiring allies to treat an attack against one as an attack against all.
It has only been invoked once, after the 9/11 terrorist attacks against the United States. Allies stepped in to provide support for the U.S.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte played down the comments as the summit opened on Wednesday, saying he believed Trump and the U.S. were still ‘totally committed’ to Article Five.
Every precaution is in place to avoid a Trump blow-up at the Hague gathering, from giving him credit for a historic spending deal to keeping the meeting short and sweet.
Ahead of the summit, Rutte heaped flattery on Trump, praising him for bringing others on board for the planned spending hike.
‘Europe is going to pay in a BIG way, as they should, and it will be your win,’ Rutte wrote in a gushing, caps-filled message to Trump, who promptly posted it on social media. ‘You are flying into another big success in The Hague,’ wrote Rutte.
America’s NATO partners have sought to win back the favour of the administration with tangible pledges to defence spending.
Allies are today set to rubber stamp a pledge to allocate 3.5 percent of GDP to core spending, plus another 1.5 percent to broader security-related areas such as cybersecurity and infrastructure.
Trump assured he was ‘committed to helping’ leaders he said he had ‘become friends with’ in comments ahead of the talks.
‘I’m committed to saving lives. I’m committed to life and safety, and I’m going to give you an exact definition. When I get there. I just don’t want to do it on the back of an airplane.’
European powers have looked to assure the Trump administration that they are serious about taking more of the financial burden from the U.S., and will be in a position to respond to foreign threats without total reliance on Washington.
The British government warned yesterday, ahead of the summit, that the UK should ‘actively prepare’ for a direct attack on British soil in a potential ‘wartime scenarios’.
In a national security strategy published on Tuesday, ministers said the UK now finds itself in ‘an era in which we face confrontation with those who are threatening our security’.
It highlighted Russian cyber attacks and sabotage against the UK, Iranian hostile activity on British soil, and other adversaries ‘laying the foundations for future conflict’.
It added: ‘For the first time in many years, we have to actively prepare for the possibility of the UK homeland coming under direct threat, potentially in a wartime scenario.’
The strategy aims to protect the UK at home and abroad, and also invest more in artificial intelligence (AI) and defence.
Rutte said that the spending boost by Europeans nations and Canada would make sure ‘that we not only are able to defend ourselves against the Russians and others, but also to equalise.’
‘And this is fair, that we spend the same as the US is spending,’ Rutte said.
Rutte said that Trump was in an ‘excellent mood’ after dining in royal splendour with the Dutch king and queen on Tuesday night and spending the night in their palace.
Trump has long groused that European countries pay too little for their own security, upended by Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The spending hike is designed to keep him engaged with the alliance, after his return to power sparked fears that he could blow up the seven-decade-old organisation.
Spain was the main hold-out on the five-percent target, complaining that spending that amount on defence was ‘unreasonable’ – and drawing Trump’s ire in the process.
Trump took fresh aim at Madrid en route to The Hague, calling its stance ‘very unfair’ and posting a graphic entitled ‘Spain threatens to derail NATO summit’ showing the relative outlay of alliance members.
One of the lowest-spending NATO countries on defence in relative terms, Spain is only set to hit the current NATO target of two percent this year after a 10-billion-euro injection.
Rutte stressed that the spending hike – billed as ‘historic’ – is needed to keep Russia in check, but even here Trump threatens to spoil NATO unity.
The US leader has turned Western policy on Ukraine on its head, reaching out to Russian President Vladimir Putin and maintaining a volatile relationship with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky.
Trump and Zelensky are slated to have a tete-a-tete in The Hague – with officials hoping to avoid a bust-up like their infamous Oval Office shouting match.
Unlike previous summits, Zelensky has not been invited to the main working session of the leaders – cut to two and a half hours, reportedly due to Trump’s dislike of lengthy talks.
Rutte said that allies would send the message that support for Kyiv was ‘unwavering and will persist’.
But despite his insistence that Ukraine’s bid for membership remains ‘irreversible’, NATO will avoid any mention of Kyiv’s push to join after Trump ruled it out.
One European diplomat put it succinctly. ‘We have a completely unpredictable US president.’
‘We are hoping there won’t be an ill-timed comment that is all anyone remembers. Everything has been done to reduce this risk,’ the official said.
