Trump Arrives in Ankara for NATO Summit, Meets Zelensky and Ahmed al-Sharaa

President Donald Trump is scheduled to arrive in Ankara on Tuesday for a NATO summit hosted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, with a substantive meeting set for Wednesday morning and plans afterward to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa before a news conference and return to Washington.

The Washington Post says Trump has long been skeptical about NATO and European allies, asserting that the alliance forged after World War II to fend off the Soviet Union has been taking advantage of Washington’s largesse, and it notes he told NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte that “I just want their loyalty.”

Al Jazeera

CNN frames the trip as happening “despite rising tension with the alliance in recent months,” and it adds that Trump gave a speech at Mount Rushmore on the eve of Independence Day warning that communism is America’s biggest threat.

The Washington Post also reports that NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte laid the foundation last month by praising Trump’s stewardship and delivering a presentation in the Oval Office of what he called the “Trump trillion,” with poster boards showing increases in Europe’s defense spending over the last decade.

In the run-up to the summit, The Washington Post says Trump began and ended one day last week with angry posts about NATO on his social media account, declaring that “the United States spends more money on NATO than any other country, by far, to protect them, without getting any benefit from so doing.”

As the summit approaches, Time reports that Zelensky urged the U.S. and European allies to make “strong decisions” at the upcoming NATO summit after Russia bombarded Kyiv with missiles and drones in the early hours of Monday morning.

Time says Zelensky argued that an “insufficient supply” of U.S.-made interceptors made it difficult for Ukraine to adequately defend itself against Russian ballistic missiles, and it quotes him insisting that the world—first and foremost the United States and European partners—come out of the summit in Ankara with strong decisions in support of air defense.

AP News

Kyiv Post reports that Trump is set to meet Zelensky on Wednesday on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Turkey, and it says the talks are expected to focus on “how we can end the war.”

The Washington Post adds that Trump plans to meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan before having dinner with fellow NATO leaders that evening, while the substantive meeting is kept short to minimize potential disruptions.

Al Jazeera’s James Bays frames the summit as high stakes by saying Trump is likely to bring up what happened over Iran, in a segment titled “What makes this NATO summit high stakes?”

AP reports that Trump “got what he wanted from NATO at last year’s summit,” where members largely acceded to demands to step up defense spending, and it says his mission this week in Turkey is to enforce that pledge.

“NATO faces a crucial test of its credibility and future viability this week as leaders meet in Turkey, with new European defense spending targets under unprecedented scrutiny from the White House”

CNBC

AP quotes Matt Whitaker, the U.S. ambassador to NATO, saying, “President Trump fully expects that all allies will step up immediately and get on the path to 5% and do it with urgency,” as Trump leaves Monday evening for the summit in Ankara.

India Today says the summit will test Trump’s influence as he seeks to make sure allies follow through on a pledge to raise defense spending to 5 per cent of their gross domestic product over the next decade, and it adds that the White House said Trump will meet Zelensky on Wednesday.

The Washington Post reports that NATO officials and diplomats from NATO countries don’t expect Trump to threaten to pull from the alliance this year as he did in 2018, but it says much will depend on his mood when he lands in Turkey.

CNN notes that, as part of the 250th celebration of America, the Trump administration built six mobile museums called “Freedom Trucks” to travel across the US, underscoring how the anniversary backdrop runs alongside the NATO confrontation over commitments and pressure.