The NATO summit at The Hague concluded with a brief statement underlying the alliance’s unity in the face of prolonged threats, namely those posed by Russia and terrorism. The statement also noted that the alliance will work to reduce trade barriers in defence spending.
As national leaders convened for the NATO summit, Russia killed up to 17 people in Ukraine after hitting a train with a ballistic missile.
Despite a recent statement by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, the NATO statement also underscored the alliance’s unanimous agreement on the 5% defence expenditure target with a minimum 3.5% baseline by 2035. French President Emmanuel Macron stated at the end of the Summit that faced with an aggressive and revisionist Russia, Europe must rearm itself and reiterated that France is doubling its defence expenditure to this end.
President Volodymyr Zelensky was also present at the summit and met with President Trump for a meeting that lasted not more than an hour. President Trump said that President Zelensky was very nice to him, but when asked at a press conference whether the US would sell Patriot missiles to Ukraine, he replied that he is still considering it and that the US needs the Patriot missiles for Israel. Ukraine signed a minerals-deal with the US hoping it would get a better chance at purchasing US weapons.
After the NATO Summit, President Zelensky flew to Strasbourg for the Council of Europe summit where he signed for the establishment of the Special Tribunal for crime of aggression against Ukraine.
Newsroom
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