U.S. President Donald Trump will attend next month's NATO leaders' summit in Türkiye, ending weeks of uncertainty over whether he would take part in a gathering expected to focus on the future of the alliance.
The confirmation came from U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio during a congressional hearing on Wednesday. Trump's attendance is likely to reassure NATO allies, many of whom have been concerned by his increasingly critical comments about the alliance.
"The United States is still in the NATO alliance, and we'll be there in Türkiye to talk about all these topics," Rubio told lawmakers.
"The president himself will be attending the next NATO meeting of heads of state, where all these points will be made clear."
The summit will take place in Ankara on 7 and 8 July.
Trump has long argued that NATO members should contribute more towards their own defence.
During his first term, he repeatedly pressed allies to meet the alliance's target of spending 2% of GDP on defence. In his second term, he has gone further, calling for spending to rise to 5%.
The president has also criticised what he sees as an overreliance on American military support and security guarantees.
His frustration has reportedly grown in recent months after several NATO countries declined to support U.S. military operations against Iran. Some refused to allow U.S. aircraft to use their airspace, while others declined requests to contribute naval forces.
Rubio said one of Trump's main concerns was that some allies had not provided access to military bases during a time of crisis.
Despite the tensions, Rubio stressed that Washington remains committed to the alliance.
"I think the next meeting of NATO in Türkiye in July is probably the most important meeting in NATO's history, because there are some things here that need to be cleared up and fixed," he said.
He added that NATO needed significant changes, echoing concerns repeatedly raised by Trump.
The president has previously described NATO as a "paper tiger" and has threatened to withdraw the United States from the alliance. Those remarks have unsettled European governments, which continue to rely heavily on U.S. military support.
At the same time, Washington is reducing some of its direct contributions to NATO operations and has urged European allies and Canada to take on greater responsibility.
Planned changes include reductions in the number of aircraft and naval assets assigned to alliance missions. The number of F-15 fighter jets is expected to be cut by around a third, while deployments of Reaper drones are set to be reduced by half.
For many European leaders, the summit comes at a sensitive moment. The continent continues to face security challenges linked to Russia's war in Ukraine, while uncertainty remains over the future direction of U.S. foreign policy.
Under former President Joe Biden, Washington provided billions of dollars in military aid to Ukraine and reaffirmed its commitment to NATO. Trump's return to office has prompted renewed questions about the long-term nature of that commitment.
NATO leaders have met annually since 2021, but this year's gathering is expected to be particularly closely watched.
Diplomats and officials across the alliance will be looking for signs of whether differences between Washington and its allies can be managed or whether they risk deepening further.
For now, Trump's decision to attend ensures he will be at the centre of discussions about NATO's future, even as he continues to challenge some of the alliance's core assumptions.
The U.S. military said it completed its latest wave of strikes on Iran, a two-hour operation that hit dozens of targets. Washington described the stri...
Georgian Post is no longer focused solely on delivering letters and parcels across Georgia. The state postal operator is transforming into a regional ...
Saudi Arabia has extended a $5 billion financial facility for Pakistan until December 2028, easing the country's external financing pressure as Islama...
French DJ and electropop musician Kavinsky, whose atmospheric sound shaped a generation of electronic music fans, has died at the age of 50, French authorities said on Tuesday.
Saudi Arabia said its overnight strikes on Iran-backed group targets in Iraq were carried out in self-defence and warned it would take further military action if the groups launched new attacks against the kingdom.
Yemen warned the Houthis were seeking to replicate Iran's Strait of Hormuz strategy in the Red Sea, as U.S. President Donald Trump said there was a "good chance" of a deal with Tehran but warned strikes could resume if talks failed.
The U.S. military said it completed its latest wave of strikes on Iran, a two-hour operation that hit dozens of targets. Washington described the strikes as a "powerful response" to Iranian missile attacks targeting U.S. forces in the Middle East a day earlier.
A fire involving two gas vessels at Egypt's Damietta port has prompted conflicting reports over whether the incident was caused by a drone strike or an onboard technical fault. Egyptian authorities said there were no casualties.
Thousands of migrants have crossed into the Spanish exclave of Ceuta from Morocco, overwhelming border security and prompting local authorities to call for a national emergency and military deployment.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said a missile that crashed in eastern Poland overnight was most likely Russian, after the incident prompted the country to scramble fighter jets and place its air defences on high alert.
Tehran and Moscow have discussed a deadly Ukrainian drone strike on an Iranian commercial vessel in Russia’s territorial waters in the Caspian Sea, while also reviewing broader cooperation in the region.
The European Union has released €3.47 billion ($4 billion) to Ukraine to help finance the purchase of drones, missiles, air defence systems and Swedish-made Gripen fighter jets, the European Commission has announced.
Iran is expected to receive its first shipment of up to 400 Chinese-made shoulder-fired air-defence missile launchers within weeks, according to three sources familiar with the agreement, in an exclusive interview with Reuters.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment