NATO chief seeks to calm strains with US

WASHINGTON — NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte sought to calm tensions with US President Donald Trump at the White House on Wednesday, using mild pushback to argue that instances of allies' reluctance to support the US conflict with Iran were limited to "isolated cases".

The NATO chief is visiting Washington to try to ease strains over the Iran conflict and US threats to draw down troops in Europe ahead of a pivotal NATO leaders' summit in July in Ankara.

Trump, a longtime NATO critic who has called the alliance a "paper tiger", has been angered by allies' refusal to support the US in the Middle East conflict or help reopen the Strait of Hormuz after a US-Israeli attack on Iran on Feb 28 disrupted the major oil shipping route. As diplomatic efforts ramp up to ease the conflict, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday that US-Iran technical talks are expected to resume next week, likely on June 29 or 30 in Switzerland.

During the Oval Office meeting with Trump, Rutte used cardboard charts to show how much NATO countries have increased their defense spending since Trump first took office in 2017.

He also said thousands of US planes had taken off from bases in Europe during the conflict, pointing to that cooperation as a sign of the allies' support. Italy pushed back on Rutte's remarks, saying Rome had authorized only technical and logistics flights.

"I know there have been isolated cases about which you are really disappointed, but generally speaking, your European allies have been there," Rutte said.

Trump appeared unconvinced, at times interrupting Rutte to disagree with him, though he praised his leadership. "You really have done a good job, and I think if anybody else were in that position, we wouldn't even be meeting today, to be honest with you, because we were let down," Trump said.

"I just want their loyalty," Trump told reporters. "They (NATO allies) weren't too nice to us in our recent little military skirmish," he added.

Tensions between Washington and NATO have escalated in recent months. After NATO allies refused to back Trump's Iran campaign, which he began without prior consultation, Trump openly questioned whether the US should stand by NATO's mutual defense pact and said he was considering leaving the alliance.

Another point of tension has been the increasing pressure from Washington on Europe to assume more of its own security as the United States believes there is an "unhealthy co-dependence" on US forces.

Troop deployments

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth last week berated "free-riding" allies at a NATO meeting and announced a six-month review of US troop deployments in Europe that could result in some reductions of US forces. That followed a decision by the US to shrink the pool of US military capabilities available to the alliance in a crisis, leaving members grappling with how to fill the gaps.

The alliance heads into the July 7-8 summit under unprecedented strain, with some European countries concerned that Washington may withdraw outright, a move that would throw into question the future of the alliance.

European leaders reaffirmed on Wednesday their commitment to a stronger defense partnership.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who invited the leaders of Britain, France, Italy and Poland to Berlin, said the NATO summit would be the moment to demonstrate Europe's determination to take a stronger leadership role in defense.

"We want to renew the alliance. We are strengthening its European pillar," Merz said as the leaders made brief remarks before meeting over dinner.

At last year's summit in The Hague, NATO leaders backed the big increase in defense spending that Trump demanded, pledging to spend 5 percent of GDP on defense and defense-related measures within a decade.

Despite Rutte's efforts to contain the rupture, analysts argue that the current tensions reflect deeper, structural shifts in US strategy rather than mere presidential temperament.

Rutte's visit should be seen primarily as an effort "to prevent NATO's internal tensions from spilling over ahead of the summit" rather than a genuine attempt to resolve all disagreements, said Ivan Cardillo, a member of the Center for International and Strategic Studies at Luiss University.

"NATO is unlikely to collapse in the short term, but the way it works is changing. The US security commitment is becoming more conditional, more transactional and more closely linked to what allies are willing and able to contribute," Cardillo said.

Liana Fix, a senior fellow for Europe at the Council on Foreign Relations, noted that both sides are reinforcing narratives of betrayal. Europe, centered on the Greenland episode, and the United States, focused on Iran, risk replacing "shared strategic understanding" and making it harder for NATO to redefine its goals, with the current trajectory resembling a "messy divorce" conducted in blame, said Fix.

AGENCIES-XINHUA