NATO's Rutte to meet Trump, aiming to ease tensions ahead of July summit

Highlights:

• Rutte's trip comes ahead of key NATO summit in July
• Trump angry with NATO over Iran war reluctance
• Washington wants Europe to do more on European defence

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte is set to meet with President Donald Trump at the White House on Wednesday, seeking to ease tensions over the Iran war and US threats to draw down troops in Europe ahead of a pivotal NATO leaders summit in July in Ankara.

Trump, a long-time NATO critic who has called the alliance a "paper tiger", has been angered by its reluctance to support the US in the Middle East conflict or help reopen the Strait of Hormuz after a US-Israeli attack on Iran on 28 February disrupted the major oil shipping route.

Defence 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 American 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 gaps. One of Rutte's primary roles since Trump's election in November 2024 has been managing the president's hostility toward the alliance and preventing tense moments, including Trump's push to acquire Greenland, from spiralling into a lasting crisis.

Wednesday's meeting is likely to follow that pattern.

"I expect he is trying to get on the same page with Trump to make sure that the NATO summit is a success or not a wipeout," said Stephen Wertheim, senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a Washington-based think tank.

"The NATO summit carries a potential for significant risk because Trump is upset and erratic, and even if Rutte comes and thinks he has an understanding with Trump, who knows what two weeks later will bring," Wertheim said.

Tensions 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 defence pact and said he was considering leaving the alliance.

Months earlier, the US president laid claim to Greenland, an autonomous territory belonging to fellow NATO member Denmark. Rutte steered the fraying transatlantic alliance back from the precipice, reinforcing his reputation as a "Trump whisperer".

Rutte, in an interview on Tuesday with Fox News, described the incidents of some NATO members denying US basing and overflight rights for war-related activities as "isolated", saying hundreds of US planes took off from US bases across Europe to support Washington's war, which he said he would convey to Trump on Wednesday.

"We will also zoom out from this to this bigger picture of what he is doing for NATO," Rutte said, adding that members were ramping up their defence spending and that he would be revealing those "huge" numbers on Wednesday.

Summit preparations

Rutte's visit is part of the final preparations for the 7-8 July summit in Ankara, NATO spokesperson Allison Hart said.

The summit "will focus on how Allies are delivering on the commitments made last year at the NATO Summit in The Hague, including on increasing defence investment, expanding defence industrial production, and continuing support for Ukraine," Hart said.

The NATO alliance is under unprecedented strain, with some European countries concerned that Washington may withdraw outright, which would be an extraordinary move that would throw into question the future of the alliance. Trump has in the past threatened to do that.

Rutte is also expected to meet with members of Congress. His visit comes as the United States believes there is an "unhealthy co-dependence" by Europe on US forces.

Still, Rutte has maintained strong ties with Pentagon officials, and Hegseth spoke warmly of his leadership at the Brussels event last week.

At last year's summit in The Hague, NATO leaders backed the big increase in defence spending that Trump demanded, pledging to spend 5% of GDP on defence and defence-related measures within a decade. But while some European countries have sharply increased defence spending, others have lagged behind.