‘Most consequential moment’ for Nato, US representative says, as he insists ‘US isn’t going anywhere’
US permanent representative to Nato Matthew Whittaker is now speaking at the Nato Public Forum.
He says the US expectations of this summit “have been pretty clear” with the focus on 5% GDP spending.
He says the Hague summit is “a historic moment, probably one of the most consequential moments in this Alliance’s history,” which he hopes will lead to “a renaissance of our defence industries, both here on the European continent and in North America.”
“That strength is what’s going to deliver peace for generations to come, because no one will want to mess with Nato and the Alliance.”
Whittaker says he hopes to see the transition to Europe taking the primary responsibility for Europe’s security, but stresses “the US isn’t going anywhere.”
“I have said that many times, and I know you have heard me say it, the United States is going to be a reliable ally, and as you see, and as you’ve seen over the last several days, the United States has certain capabilities that you want an alliance to have.”
Pushed again on the US involvement in Nato, he adds:
“We’ve never been more engaged, that’s the thing.
I sound like a broken record, and I am sure there are people in this room that have heard me say this in many different places, whether it’s in Estonia or Latvia or in Turkey wherever I’ve been.
The United States isn’t going anywhere. We’re expecting our European allies to step up to be equal partners with us in the alliance and again, that strength, with all of us all 32 allies is what’s going to deliver that peace, but the United States is here to stay.”
Key events
Jakub Krupa
Meloni is not the only national leader addressing their parliament before going to The Hague.
German chancellor Friedrich Merz is speaking in the Bundestag right now.
I will bring you the key news lines here.
Meloni says higher defence spending must benefit Italian firms
Meanwhile, Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni told the Italian parliament that if the country spends more on defence to meet its international commitments, the extra outlays should benefit Italian companies rather than foreign ones.
Her comments come just before the Nato summit in The Hague, where leaders are expected to agree to the increased 5% GDP spending on defence.
US Nato representative hints at Trump’s remarks on expectations for alliance, lauds his Middle East actions
Whittaker also says that he is expecting US president Donald Trump “might deliver some remarks” on his views on the summit, as he stresses that “we need to make sure that everyone’s investing in the common defence of the Alliance.”
“I don’t want to … sort of … steal what he might say, nor do I claim to be able to read his mind and know what he’s going to say. But I think he has demonstrated through, again, decisive action leading to peace.”
He also lauds Trump’s “leadership in making the right decision at the right time” and says it may have “changed everyone’s calculation and lead to that area [the Middle East] … calming down.”
“And again, that’s good for Europe, because there’s been a lot of irregular flows of migrants through Europe, from the Middle East because of the instability.
And so hopefully, with Syria now appearing to be stable, with Iran, maybe in check a little more than they had been, I think we could really see a generational moment here where the Middle East is more stable than it has been in a while.”
‘Most consequential moment’ for Nato, US representative says, as he insists ‘US isn’t going anywhere’
US permanent representative to Nato Matthew Whittaker is now speaking at the Nato Public Forum.
He says the US expectations of this summit “have been pretty clear” with the focus on 5% GDP spending.
He says the Hague summit is “a historic moment, probably one of the most consequential moments in this Alliance’s history,” which he hopes will lead to “a renaissance of our defence industries, both here on the European continent and in North America.”
“That strength is what’s going to deliver peace for generations to come, because no one will want to mess with Nato and the Alliance.”
Whittaker says he hopes to see the transition to Europe taking the primary responsibility for Europe’s security, but stresses “the US isn’t going anywhere.”
“I have said that many times, and I know you have heard me say it, the United States is going to be a reliable ally, and as you see, and as you’ve seen over the last several days, the United States has certain capabilities that you want an alliance to have.”
Pushed again on the US involvement in Nato, he adds:
“We’ve never been more engaged, that’s the thing.
I sound like a broken record, and I am sure there are people in this room that have heard me say this in many different places, whether it’s in Estonia or Latvia or in Turkey wherever I’ve been.
The United States isn’t going anywhere. We’re expecting our European allies to step up to be equal partners with us in the alliance and again, that strength, with all of us all 32 allies is what’s going to deliver that peace, but the United States is here to stay.”
Russia criticises Nato’s ‘rampant militarisation’
Previewing the Nato summit, the Kremlin criticised the alliance’s “rampant militarisation” as it criticised the proposal for member countries to ramp up defence spending, AFP reported.
“The alliance is assuredly going along the path of rampant militarisation. Europe is going along the path of rampant militarisation. This is the reality that surrounds us,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Zelenskyy plans to meet Trump on sidelines of Nato summit
There are more quotes from Ukraine’s Zelenskyy in his interview with Sky News’s Mark Austin.
On plans to meet Trump on the sidelines of the Nato summit:
I am planning [to]. I don’t know what will happen, the teams are working on this, but there are plans to meet.
On whether Trump has a better relationship with Putin than him:
It’s a complicated question because I truly don’t know what relationship Trump has with Putin. … I am confident that president Trump understands that Ukrainians are allies to America, and the real existential enemy of America is Russia. They will never be friends. They may be short term partners, but they will never be friends.
On prospects for Ukraine’s Nato membership:
I believe it is an advantageous proposal for Nato today to have an ally like Ukraine, with Nato weapons, with new technology. … We have no secrets, and experienced people with 10 years of different types of fighting. … It isn’t just the battlefield, it’s the economy, … it’s cyber-attacks, it’s the banking system, it’s the energy sector… Nato doesn’t have this experience.
I’m not saying we would be in Nato, but if somebody says, Ukraine needs Nato, I believe that this is a mutual opportunity. Nato needs Ukrainians, too.
On ceasefire:
A ceasefire is nobody’s victory and nobody’s defeat. It’s a compromise on both ends. Both sides in this war had absolutely different goals. The Russians intended to occupy us, and they are open about that. Ukrainians intended to stop that, and this is a war for independence.
Asked if Ukraine is losing the war?
No, I don’t think so. This isn’t a simple situation for us, but it is not as difficult as in the first days of the invasion.
On if he supports for the US strikes on Iran:
“Yes, the destruction of their capabilities, their capability to kill people, yes. I believe this is a powerful and correct move.”
On the Middle East crisis drawing the attention away from Ukraine:
“It is a big problem, the political focus is changing, and this means the aid from partners, above all from the US, may be reduce and we don’t want that.”
On Putin taking advantage of that shift:
“Putin will lose politically in any event, because he’s shown [what] an ally of Iran [he is]. He will lose because he won’t be able to give Iran anything, because he is not as powerful as the legend has.”
European allies should ‘stop worrying so much’ about US, Rutte says
Discussing the US commitment to Nato, Rutte says that for a long time European allies overly worried about whether the US would appoint a new Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, or Saceur.
He said he always argued it was unnecessary worry and that was confirmed by the appointment of Lieutenant General Alexus G. Grynkewich.
“Guess what? The new Supreme Allied Commander has been announced, and last time I checked his passport, it was the US, so that didn’t happen.
So my message to my European colleagues is: stop worrying so much. Start to make sure that you get investment plans done, that you get industrial base up and running, that the support for Ukraine remains at a high level.
This is what you should work on and stop running around being worried about the US. They are there, they are with us.”
Nato secretary general Mark Rutte is now speaking on the opening session of the Nato Public Forum, who proudly speaks of his connections with The Hague where he was born and raised.
He starts once again by making the argument for the new 5% GDP target, warning about Russia’s military ramp up.
Train disruption on Nato summit day ‘could be sabotage’, Dutch minister says
Kicking off the Nato Public Forum, Dutch justice and security minister David van Well says the organisers looked at some 40 scenarios that could disrupt the summit, including state actors, terrorists, activists, and cyber-attacks.
I think you’re probably in one of the safest spaces in the world right now.
But when he gets asked about major train disruptions on lines between Utrecht and Amsterdam, with no trains running to and from Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport, and disruptions on lines to The Hague due to a power failure, he admits:
“That could be sabotage, that’s one of the things that we’re looking into. And then the question is, well, who was behind it?
That can be activist group, it can be state actor led, it can be any kind.
The main thing we’re trying to do now is make sure that those cables get repaired and that we get the traffic flowing, because in combination with the summit where we close down highways and people rely on public transport a lot more.”
Dutch media outlet NRC said there was “considerable damage” to around thirty power cables, with the cause of the fire currently unknown.
Zelenskyy says Nato spending ramp up is ‘slow,’ warns of possible Russian attack on Nato within five years
Zelenskyy also warned that even the proposed, radically increased, Nato spending target of 5% of GDP might be too low.
He told Sky News:
“In my view, this is slow because we believe that starting from 2030 Putin can have significantly greater capabilities.
Today, Ukraine is holding him up. He has no time to drill the army, and they are all getting annihilated and wiped out at the battlefield.”
Zelenskyy also said he believed Russia’s Putin could try to attack a Nato member within the next five years.
The full interview will be broadcast later this morning, and I will monitor it for more news lines.
Zelenskyy urges Nato to sanction companies providing components for Russian missiles
Speaking with Sky News before the Nato summit begins, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged allies to step up their sanctions to cover more producers of components used for missile strikes on Ukraine.
Components for their missiles – and missiles are the most painful strikes – are coming in from other countries, including the UK, not too much, but including the UK.
He said “it’s … mostly China, Taiwan, but also Europe, also Germany, also eastern Europe.”
“There are lists of these companies and lists of these components, we are monitoring this.
It is vitally important for us, and we are handing this list over to our partners and asking them to apply sanctions. Otherwise the Russians will have [more] missiles.”
Morning opening: Nato summit day 1
Jakub Krupa
After a very long buildup, it’s time for the main event to finally begin. The 2025 Nato summit in The Hague starts today.
It’s very much a slow start with many leaders, including US president Donald Trump, only expected to arrive in late afternoon to take part in an official dinner starting at 7pm local time.
But even before then, we should get some early indications as to key positions and issues to be discussed at the summit as a number of side events get under way this morning.
We will hear from Nato secretary general Mark Rutte, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, and a long list of national ministers and senior officials taking part in the Nato Public Forum and the Nato Summit Defence Industry Forum.
And even before leaving for The Hague, German chancellor Friedrich Merz will address the Bundestag, presenting his government’s plans to ramp up defence spending as part of the new Nato 5% GDP target.
It should be a lively day. Stay with us for all the latest updates.
It’s Tuesday, 24 June 2025, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.
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