President Donald Trump claimed there was “tremendous unity” at the end of the NATO summit in Ankara, despite having heavily criticized U.S. allies throughout the conference.
During the summit, he demanded the United States cut all trade ties with Spain, calling it a “terrible partner” and a “wasted cause.” He also renewed demands for the U.S. to control Greenland. Trump then claimed there was “a lot of love in that room.”
“There was tremendous unity in that room, and I urge all nations to accelerate their plans to get the benchmark as quickly as possible. The benchmark is gonna be that 5% number, that’s the number it should have been for years,” he said.
By repeatedly emphasizing the 5% GDP benchmark, he frames higher defense spending as both an issue of fairness to the United States and a prerequisite for credible deterrence. The remarks seek both an acceleration of European rearmament and reassurance for Trump’s domestic audience about reducing perceived financial imbalances within the alliance.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who has continuously tried to ease Trump’s concerns over defense spending, Iran, and Greenland, while lavishing praise on the president for bringing such issues to the fore.
President Trump told reporters at the NATO summit in Turkey that there was ‘tremendous unity’ among allies and praised member nations accelerating toward a 5% GDP defense-spending benchmark https://t.co/y6YgAL6U2S pic.twitter.com/MmwVt5BZPH
— Reuters (@Reuters) July 8, 2026
“Greenland is a big problem for us,” Trump said, without expanding on the reasons. “And the other big problem is that, when we wanted them, we did say: ‘if you want to join us.’ And they all said no. But when they could have, they weren’t there for us. And we’ve been there for them. We spent over $1 trillion over the last short period, in order to protect these countries from Russia and it’s nothing to do with us, we have an ocean. But it’s been a long-term thing and they haven’t treated us right. And Mark understands that.”
Suggesting that Rutte “understands” his position publicly placed the Secretary General in a difficult position. The statement takes advantage of Rutte’s diplomatic approach and alignment with Trump’s critique, increasing pressure on other allies to acknowledge U.S. grievances. The American president also seemed to conflate U.S. spending on NATO with expectations that allies accommodate his priorities—that Denmark cede Greenland to advance U.S. strategic interests and that Spain offer its airspace for operations against Iran.
