Trump at NATO: Four things we’re watching

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ON THE GROUND IN TURKEY

Ines de La Cuetara is reporting live today from Ankara, where leaders from all 32 NATO nations are gathering for a high-stakes two-day summit. Here’s what she’s watching:

The 5% report card. It was a big win for Donald Trump last year when he got allies to commit to spending 5% of their GDP on defense. This year, you’re going to see allies trying to prove they’re doing just that.

It’s been a persistent point of frustrati on for the president. Just last week on Truth Social, he called it “ridiculous” for the U.S. to maintain its relationship with NATO, describing the alliance as one-sided because members didn’t show up for America in its war with Iran.

U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker previewed the president’s message in a briefing with reporters: Trump is going to get allies on the road to 5% — and he’s going to do it with urgency.

Ukraine, front and center. Trump has said he wants to resolve the situation in Ukraine now that he feels he’s made progress on Iran. He spoke with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy over the weekend — a conversation Zelenskyy called “very good” — and separately with Russia’s Vladimir Putin for roughly 90 minutes. Trump and Zelenskyy will meet face-to-face here on Wednesday.

Russia’s message, delivered in missiles. This diplomacy comes as Russia ramps up its air attacks on Ukraine. Overnight, 68 missiles and 350 drones were fired at the Kyiv region, killing at least 21 people and wounding more than 100. 

That’s no coincidence. The same thing happened on the eve of the Group of Seven summit last month. Russia is clearly trying to send the message that it still has the upper hand — and to counter the narrative that it’s not doing so well on the battlefield.

The awkward handshake. Trump and Giorgia Meloni will meet in person for the first time since the American president claimed the Italian prime minister “begged” him for a photo at the G7 — a story Meloni says he fabricated. Over the weekend, the U.S. president goaded her again, posting a photo of Meloni gazing up at him with the caption: “RESTRAINING ORDER NEEDED.” 

Rome, for its part, is trying to stay above it — “people come and go,” Italy’s defense minister said Monday, “but relationships remain.” 

Source: Gallup poll of 1,000 Ukrainians age 15 and above, conducted annually between 2014 and 2026. Margin of error: ±3.8 percentage points

ON THIS DATE

On July 6, 1957, Althea Gibson beat Darlene Hard 6-3, 6-2 to become the first African American to win Wimbledon — accepting the trophy from Queen Elizabeth II.

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