The key North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit continued today in The Hague, Netherlands. See the conclusions and reactions.
The most important thing:
– Slovakia did not block the increase in defense spending;
– NATO leaders agreed to increase defense spending to 5 percent of GDP annually. Currently, it was 2 percent, and even that was not being met by some countries;
– Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj also arrived in The Hague;
– The NATO summit ended today.
ONLINE:
18:15 – We also cover the NATO summit in our today's podcast Aktuality Nahlas.
17:48 – After the NATO summit, the US president said during a press conference that he would check whether the US could provide Ukraine with additional Patriot air defense systems, but stressed that the United States also needs them. The daily Ukrainska Pravda reports this.
There was also an interesting moment during the briefing when Donald Trump asked a Ukrainian journalist who was asking him about the Patriots if he lived in Ukraine. The Ukrainian correspondent told him that she lived with her children across the border, but that she had a husband in Ukraine. The US president asked if he was serving on the front lines. After receiving a positive answer, he told the journalist:"It's tough, isn't it?"
After his response, he then told her that he"wished her good luck." "I can see that this saddens you very much. Give my regards to your husband," Ukrainian Truth quotes Trump.
16:51 – Peter Pellegrini during his briefing said that he was surprised by the words of the Hungarian Prime Minister, who claimed today that several countries, including Slovakia, were against Volodymyr Zelensky's participation in working meetings in The Hague.
"Neither I personally, nor the ministers, nor the ambassador made such a request to the summit," the president stated, adding that the partners had received information in advance from the head of the Alliance that the summit would concern exclusively the Alliance and its future functioning, and that only NATO member countries would sit at the round table.
Although Zelensky was in The Hague, where he held several meetings, he was not present at the working meeting of the Alliance leaders.
16:40 – The Slovak president posted a photo on Facebook with US President Donald Trump. In addition to Pellegrini, the photo also includes Defense Minister Robert Kaliňák and Slovak Foreign Minister Juraj Blanár.
716:36 – The meeting between Volodymyr Zelensky and Donald Trump in The Hague has ended. According to Ukrainian media, it lasted 45 minutes and was much longer than planned.
"A long and meaningful meeting with President Trump. We discussed all the really important issues. Thank you Mr. President, thank you to the United States. We talked about how to achieve a ceasefire and real peace. We talked about how to protect our people. We appreciate your attention and willingness to help bring peace closer. Details later," Zelensky wrote on the social network Telegram.
716:26 – Slovak President Peter Pellegrini is very pleased that the text of the adopted conclusions at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit fully corresponds to some of the comments submitted by the Slovak Republic. He stated this today in The Hague after NATO member states agreed to increase their defense spending to five percent of gross domestic product by 2035.
"The Slovak Republic, together with other countries, including Great Britain and Italy, managed to push for an extension of the period for countries to achieve the fulfillment of this commitment to up to ten years," Pellegrini told reporters.
The President also expressed satisfaction with the fact that the final document does not define a mandatory increase in the percentage of defense spending. “Flexibility is left so that member countries can adjust the trajectory according to their needs, within their capabilities, economic strength and ability to invest,” the Slovak President noted. In his speech at the summit, he declared that Slovakia is aware that Europe must take on a more responsible and serious role within NATO in strengthening its defense capabilities.
15:25 – A meeting between the US president and the Ukrainian president has begun in The Hague, writes a correspondent for the Ukrainian website European Truth. The meeting between Zelensky and Trump began shortly after the main meeting of NATO leaders ended and the publication of the final document, in which NATO members also agreed that assistance to the Armed Forces of Ukraine would be counted as defense spending.
14:30 – NATO leaders have pledged to invest 5 percent of GDP annually in defense and security spending by 2035, "to ensure the fulfillment of our individual and collective commitments," according to the final text of the Hague Summit Declaration, which has just been adopted.
The statement further states that members will submit “annual plans” that will document “a credible, progressive path to achieving this goal,” with a more comprehensive review of progress made in 2029.
The five-point declaration also includes a line affirming"the ironclad commitment of the 32 countries to collective defense, as enshrined in Article 5 of the Washington Treaty - that an attack on one is an attack on all."
The document includes a line pledging continued support for Ukraine and noting that its “security contributes to our security,” but stops short of directly condemning Russia. The document does, however, refer to Russia as a “long-term threat.”
13:35 – The official part of the NATO summit should end in a few minutes and the head of the alliance, Mark Rutte, should speak. We continue to follow the developments live. The key will be what increase in defense spending everyone will agree on. Will it be 5 percent, as demanded by NATO's eastern wing, i.e. Poland and the Baltics but also the Balkans? In any case, in the case of Slovakia, it would be billions more per year.
12:40 – See snapshots from the NATO summit. President Pellegrini is in the third photo below:
7
712:22 – Donald Trump plans to talk about the “difficulties” facing Ukraine today during a meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky . “We’re going to discuss the obvious things, his difficulties. Zelensky is a good guy. I think I’ll meet with him today. I don’t know. I assume we’ll discuss Ukraine,” Trump was quoted as saying by Ukrainian Truth.
The US president also said he spoke with Vladimir Putin, who was"very pleasant"."He offered, as you know, help with Iran. I said I don't need help with Iran, I need help with Russia. I said: do us a favor - help us with Russia, not with Iran. But he was very pleasant," he said.
11:53 – NATO currently sees no signs of a direct Russian military threat to Moldova. According to the Moldovan website Newsmaker, a senior Alliance official responded to a question about his perception of Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean's statement about Russian plans to deploy 10,000 troops in the separatist Transnistria. The NATO official also mentioned that Russia actively tried to undermine the Moldovan elections last year and spent millions of dollars on it.
11:32 – Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has strongly criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's participation in the NATO summit in The Hague, Netherlands. According to the Hungarian Prime Minister, the leaders of Hungary, Slovakia, Turkey and the United States opposed Zelensky's presence at the working meetings.
11:30 – NATO chief Mark Rutte just gave an unusually tough speech. Here are excerpts:
“We meet at a dangerous time for a billion of our citizens. Russia’s war against Ukraine continues. An assertive group of adversaries seeks to divide and challenge us. There is war in the Middle East. Terrorism poses a persistent threat, and new technologies bring opportunities but also many serious security challenges. In the face of these realities, we stand together, united in NATO, the strongest defense alliance in the history of the world.”
11:20 a.m. – Polish President Andrzej Duda said NATO's commitment under Article 5 to collective defense cannot be questioned."Article 5 is clear... and it means collective defense, and this article is not up for discussion," Duda said as he arrived for the second day of the NATO summit on Wednesday.
11:00 – While leaders agree – and it will take a few more hours – see how much NATO member states are spending on defense today. Alliance chief Mark Rutte's post-summit press conference is scheduled for 1:45 p.m. local time. Will member states commit to up to 5 percent of GDP?
It would be a huge increase and would cost Slovakia billions more annually. But several countries are already moving towards five percent themselves – especially those that are immediately aware of the threat from Russia.
10:34 – NATO, according to the Ukrainian website European Truth, predicts a difficult summer for Ukraine. Alliance intelligence indicates that Russian President Vladimir Putin believes in the ability of the Russian army to achieve a breakthrough on the Russian-Ukrainian front, which is why he will probably intensify attacks regardless of heavy losses, the website writes, citing a high-ranking Alliance official. “He really thinks he is winning, but it is based on false information,” the NATO official claims. According to him, the Alliance expects movements in the Sumy region, for example. According to European Truth, NATO does not believe that the Russians can encircle Sumy, but they think that they will at least try.
10:30 – President Volodymyr Zelenskyy surprised with a significant change of clothes during his visit to The Hague. He exchanged the green T-shirt with the Ukrainian trident, which he usually wears since February 2022 as a sign of support for the defenders of Ukraine, for an elegant suit.
Observers agree that this is not a coincidence, but rather Zelensky's intention and non-verbal communication directed at US President Donald Trump, with whom he is scheduled to meet in The Hague today. Read more in the article by our colleague Ján Debnár.
10:10 – NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said that given the ongoing threats, there is no alternative to higher defense spending.
"Given our long-term threat from Russia, but also the massive military buildup in China and the fact that North Korea, China and Iran are supporting the war effort in Ukraine, it is really important that we spend more. So that will be number one on the agenda today," Rutte told reporters before heading to meet NATO leaders today.
10:00 – The NATO summit continues today in The Hague, Netherlands, ending today. The key issue is still unresolved – will member states commit to increasing defense spending from the current 2% to 5% of GDP? Slovakia is represented at the summit by President Peter Pellegrini, who is talking about 3.5 percent. He also promised that Slovakia will not block the unity of the alliance.
