Preparations are underway for a crucial NATO summit in The Hague, where Secretary-General Mark Rutte will face his first significant challenge. He must skillfully manage the expectations of U.S. President Donald Trump, who is expected to reiterate demands for increased defense spending. The anticipated agreement includes raising NATO defense spending from 2% to 5% of GDP. Rutte's previous successes as a diplomatic mediator with Trump, which earned him the title of 'Trump whisperer', will be essential in ensuring a productive summit and preventing tensions similar to past meetings.
Their nightmare scenario is the turbulent 2018 NATO summit... when a video of a tense exchange... set the tone of the entire meeting.
Rutte was reportedly key in convincing the US president that NATO was worth keeping, helping to establish his reputation as one of Europe's 'Trump whisperers'.
Trump wants to see clear results. And the likely outcome will be a commitment by all 32 NATO allies to raise defense spending to 5 percent of GDP.
Despite the fact that a lot has happened in the world since then, Trump will come to the Netherlands with the very same message -- spend more on defense.
Collection
[
|
...
]