Trump pivots from threats to 'love' at NATO summit in Ankara after closed-door flattery
The US president arrived in Ankara hurling accusations over Iran, Greenland and Spanish defence spending, but emerged from a closed-door session praising 'incredible love' and unity among the 32 allies.
Arrival and early tensions
Donald Trump landed in Ankara on Tuesday already voicing deep disappointment with NATO. He accused Britain, Italy, Germany and France of abandoning the United States in the Iran war and revived his demand that Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory, should be controlled by Washington. The US president said he had only travelled to the Turkish capital to avoid embarrassing host Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
On Wednesday morning the rhetoric escalated. Trump called Spain a 'hopelessly bad' ally and threatened to sever trade ties because Madrid refuses to meet his newly declared target of spending 5 percent of GDP on defence. Spain also denied the US use of its bases for strikes on Iran. Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen was forced to reiterate that Copenhagen would defend Greenland militarily if necessary.
Behind closed doors: a shift in tone
When the leaders moved into their private session on Wednesday afternoon, the atmosphere changed abruptly. NATO secretary-general Mark Rutte spent several minutes lavishing praise on Trump, participants said, and the president's mood lifted. Trump later described the meeting as 'very special' and claimed there was 'a lot of love in the room'.
They told me they love me. These are grown people who say such things, isn't that nice?
According to attendees, Trump did not repeat any of the accusations he had made publicly hours earlier. One participant quoted him as saying, 'I want to stay with you.' The Greenland question, which had shocked European allies when Trump resurrected it on arrival, was not raised again during the closed-door talks.
- Trump arrives in Ankara, expresses disappointment with NATO, revives Greenland claim and criticises allies over Iran war.
- Trump attacks Spain as 'hopelessly bad', threatens to end trade relations over 5% defence spending target.
- Closed-door session: Rutte flatters Trump, president says there is 'a lot of love in the room' and does not repeat earlier accusations.
- Closing press conference: Trump and Rutte hail summit as a success, declare alliance stronger than ever.
Unresolved disputes
Despite the warm words, the underlying fractures remained visible. Trump's core grievance, that European allies did not join US military operations against Iran, was not resolved. The fragile ceasefire in the Strait of Hormuz makes countries such as Germany unwilling to commit naval assets to mine-clearing, and a stable truce appears distant.
We are ready to defend every centimetre of NATO territory, including our own.
The Spanish defence-spending row also stayed on the table. Prime minister Pedro Sanchez has openly rejected the 5 percent target, and Trump's threat to halt trade with Madrid was not formally withdrawn. The president's earlier warning that he could pull all American soldiers out of Europe hung over the gathering even after the conciliatory finale.
Summit declares unity
At the closing press conference, both Trump and Rutte insisted the Ankara summit had been a success. Rutte pointed to the first article of the summit declaration, which reaffirms the allies' commitment to collective defence under Article 5, as proof that the alliance is 'stronger than ever'. He dismissed the verbal attacks as the kind of quarrels that strengthen friendships.
This summit has shown that the alliance is closer than ever.
Trump thanked Erdogan and Rutte, praised the 32 allies for their 'great work' and said the meeting sent a signal of 'great unity'. The president, who had begun the week by telling reporters he was 'very disappointed with NATO', ended it by declaring he had 'a great time'.
