Reactions among NATO Nations as Trump Showed up
- 4m ago(09:30 GMT)
Al-Sharaa arrives in Ankara
Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa has arrived in Ankara to meet US President Trump on the sidelines of the NATO summit.
Al-Sharaa was invited by Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Trump, who has flaunted his closeness to Turkey’s President Erdogan, described his Syrian counterpart as “tough”.
“Because of the president (Erdogan), we have a very good relationship with Syria’s new leader,” the US leader told reporters on Tuesday.
“He’s done an amazing job in a year and a half; he’s pulled the whole country together. And I have a very, very good relationship with him.
- 7m ago(09:26 GMT)
Erdogan says ‘unity is reflected in security’ in NATO speech
Turkiye’s leader has called for unity among NATO allies, saying it is crucial to the security of all members.
“We need to have complete harmony and we need to get ourselves away from anything that can hurt the relations between Europe and the other side of the ocean. Unity is reflected in a big way on security, and we need to avoid any rifts,” said Erdogan in a speech to NATO leaders.
“Hopefully this summit will bring welfare and peace, and I wish everyone all the best here. Thank you.”
- 17m ago(09:16 GMT)
Erdogan and Rutte greet world leaders at NATO summit’s opening
Turkish President Erdogan and NATO Secretary-General Rutte have welcomed world leaders as they arrived at the summit in Ankara, Turkiye.
Leaders stopped for a handshake and photograph as the second day of the summit gets under way.
Views on threats, risks and challenges against the alliance will be discussed as well as the situation in Ukraine.
Erdogan is expected to hold meetings with several leaders on the sidelines of the meeting. Turkiye, a member of NATO for more than 70 years, joined the alliance in 1952.
Rutte, Trump, and Erdogan pose for a photo in Ankara on Wednesday [AFP] Advertisement - 24m ago(09:10 GMT)
Zelenskyy announces 5 deaths in overnight Russian attacks
The Ukrainian president has met Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and held “an important conversation”, he says in a post on Telegram.
“We talked about the need for additional missiles for air defence systems, and we are very much counting on support,” he said he told Meloni. “Italy always fundamentally helps protect life. Thank you.”
Ukraine’s leader also announced five people were killed overnight in Russian attacks.
“Russia does not stop shelling our cities and communities. Today there were ballistic strikes again, and drone strikes were launched. Unfortunately, there are deaths in Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Kherson. Russia took the lives of five people. My condolences to the family and friends,” Zelenskyy said.
Russia says it downed hundreds of Ukrainian drones, vows retaliatory strikes - 34m ago(09:00 GMT)
Greenland’s people don’t want to be Americans, says Iceland PM
Speaking at the NATO summit in Turkiye after President Trump again expressed a desire for US control over Greenland, Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said: “Greenland is of course not for sale.
“We hope that all, including all allies, will respect the Greenland people right for self-determination,” she added. “And we are sovereign states and we need everybody to respect our territorial integrity and our sovereignty.”
Iceland’s Prime Minister Kristrun Frostadottir said Greenland’s people “do not wish to be a part of the United States” and that NATO allies should focus on the threat from Russia.
Earlier, Trump told Secretary-General Rutte that Greenland is a “problem” that will be raised in the main meeting on Wednesday.
Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen speaks to the media on Wednesday in Ankara [AFP] - 49m ago(08:45 GMT)
Attacks between Russia and Ukraine escalate during NATO summit
According to Russia’s Defence Ministry, its air defences destroyed 415 Ukrainian drones over the country overnight.
Two tankers were damaged in Taganrog Bay, and two people were injured there, according to the governor of Rostov-on-Don. Both tankers were empty and no oil spill was reported.
In Saratov and Nizhnekamsk, Ukrainian drones attacked oil refineries again, killing one person and injuring several. Nizhnekamsk, in Tatarstan, was subjected to a huge drone attack. Restrictions are still in effect at the city’s airport.
Two days ago, drones hit the Omsk refinery in western Siberia, one of the largest oil refineries in Russia, leading to severe fuel shortages in the Urals region and Siberia.
Attacks on Russia continue, and Moscow says it is not going to wind down its strikes on Ukraine, either.
- 1h ago(08:30 GMT)
NATO leaders ‘walk a fine line’ over Trump and Iran escalation
It was already a very packed agenda, and Iran clearly was going to be on it because President Trump is still aggrieved that his NATO allies – back on the last day of February – did not come to the support, in his view, of the US and Israel when they launched their war.
I think that NATO leaders will be worried that this is the second time we have had a flare-up. Is this, like the last time, going to be settled with a little bit more diplomacy? Or is there going to be another escalation?
They are worried about the fact that many people think there is a memorandum of “misunderstanding” over the Strait of Hormuz.
I think most people at this summit do not want the war to start again, and they’ll be urging restraint. So it’s a difficult line, I think, for the NATO leaders to walk.
NATO leaders have arrived here now. President Trump was considerably late. They are all sitting in a room, waiting for the US president.
US President Donald Trump speaks on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara on Wednesday [AFP] - 1h ago(08:20 GMT)
NATO boss praises Trump over spending push
Secretary-General Rutte has complimented President Trump on his push to get NATO allies to open up their wallets on military expenditures.
“When you have achieved this, this is a huge win,” Rutte told the US leader. “This wouldn’t have happened without you in the chair.”
Rutte noted over the last two years Canada and European nations have spent $215bn more on military hardware, calling it “staggering”.
“In the meantime, almost 200,000 jobs in the US are being supported by all the investments by countries in the United States, in the defence industry,” he added.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte with US President Donald Trump on Wednesday [AFP] - Get instant alerts and updates based on your interests. Be the first to know when big stories happen.
- 1h ago(08:15 GMT)
NATO chief says US strikes on Iran ‘absolutely necessary’
Mark Rutte says the overnight US attacks on Iran were necessary as they violated the ceasefire.
“I think it is totally crucial that the US forcefully reacts,” he said.
Rutte added he expects NATO members to “reconfirm that Iran should never, ever get its hands on a nuclear capability”, and also reaffirm the importance of freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
He said he has “no doubt” the US remains committed to NATO, but it has an “expectation” that allies would “equalise” their defence spending with Washington.
Defence spending is likely to be a key issue at the summit, with Rutte calling on allies to present “credible” plans to meet the target of spending 5 percent of GDP on defence by 2035, as agreed at The Hague last year.
Mark Rutte at the NATO leaders’ summit in Ankara, Turkiye [Yves Herman/Reuters] - 1h ago(08:07 GMT)
President Trump gives news conference at NATO summit
President Trump is giving a news conference at the NATO summit alongside Secretary-General Mark Rutte.
Trump praised the first day of meetings, saying it was “successful, it’s been fantastic”. But he later added he’s “very upset with NATO”.
Trump also derided Iran’s leaders after the latest flare-up in fighting. “They’re sick, there’s something wrong with them,” he said.
“We’re having the big meeting in a little while and I’m going to relate my problems. Greenland is a big problem for us,” said Trump.
- 1h ago(08:00 GMT)
NATO to refocus as Russia’s war rages in Ukraine
In Kyiv, there has been a new wave of attacks – the third this week. This really underscores President Zelenskyy’s message in Ankara: more air defence is needed.
Of all seven missiles Russia launched last night, Ukraine’s air force says none was intercepted. Its drone interception rate, however, is quite high at about 80 percent.
However, Ukraine’s Achilles’ heel remains its ability to intercept aerial threats, specifically cruise missiles, which Russia has been launching en masse, especially over the last few weeks.
Diplomatic efforts to end the four-year war have largely stalled, and one of Zelenskyy’s top priorities coming to Ankara is to draw the focus to Ukraine. Zelenskyy is set to meet President Trump this afternoon.
- 1h ago(07:45 GMT)
Gulf leaders eyeing NATO response after Iran-US attacks
Muhanad Seloom, from the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, says Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) leaders will be closely watching the NATO summit for possible responses to the new outbreak of fighting between Iran and the US.
“NATO leader Rutte said these US attacks were necessary, basically signalling NATO stands behind the US retaliation against Iran,” Seloom told Al Jazeera.
“I think what the Iranians are now considering is how GCC countries are going to react, what the US is going to do, when they will stop the military operations, and where NATO leaders will stand,” he said.
“Because NATO leaders resisted interfering or contributing to the war before and to the effort to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. But if that changes, I think the whole calculus in the region would change as well.”
Trump criticises NATO allies over Iran conflict support - 2h ago(07:30 GMT)
Leaders begin to show up at NATO meeting
World leaders have been arriving here in Ankara. We’re expecting Donald Trump here very shortly, and the proceedings are likely to be dominated by overnight events in the Middle East.
It is the news of the day, and that memorandum of understanding is looking increasingly shaky.
The US military says it hit targets in Iran in response to attacks by Iran on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard says one of its members has been killed and several people have reportedly been injured.
This all comes nearly three weeks after the memorandum of understanding between Iran and the US was signed.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte has strongly backed the military action by the US against Iran.
- 2h ago(07:15 GMT)
Here are the latest developments
- US President Donald Trump criticised NATO allies and singled out European countries that he perceives as unsupportive during the US-Israel war on Iran.
- The US leader also reignited tensions over Greenland, saying the territory “should be controlled by the United States, not by Denmark”.
- Speaking in Ankara after Trump’s remarks, Danish Prime Minister Frederiksen said she expects allies to respect Denmark’s sovereignty and accept that Greenland is not for sale.
- Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged the alliance to step up military provisions for its air defences following a deadly escalation of Russian attacks on Kyiv, saying he signed new agreements with Estonia, the Netherlands, and Denmark in Ankara.
- Five NATO members are projected to meet the alliance’s goal of spending 3.5 percent of gross domestic product on core defence already in 2026.
- 2h ago(07:05 GMT)
Welcome to our coverage
Hello and welcome to our live page covering the second day of a NATO summit in Ankara, Turkiye.
Stay with us for the latest news and analyses from the meeting.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrives for the NATO summit in Ankara [Metin Aktaa/AP]
.jpeg)
Comments
Post a Comment