Trump questions 'Article 5' of NATO's charter. Reaction of other leaders

Politico reports that Trump's statements came on the eve of the NATO summit in The Hague and resonated with leaders of member nations.

On Tuesday, before leaving for the summit, Trump said that "there are many definitions of Article 5," a key provision of NATO's charter that obliges countries to defend each other in the event of an attack. The very next day, he tried to soften the effect of his words, telling reporters, "We're with them to the end."

Despite this, countries particularly vulnerable to potential aggression from Russia - such as Estonia, Lithuania, Finland and Poland - issued assurances that there was no doubt about the US commitment.

"Article 5 absolutely works," said Estonian Prime Minister Kristjan Michal. He was supported by Finnish President Alexander Stubb: "I don't think President Trump is questioning Article 5." Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stjøre emphasised that "the US is in full compliance with its commitments to NATO". Polish President Andrzej Duda added: "Article 5 is not even in question - it's not up for discussion."

The NATO summit is also expected to approve a new military spending target of 5 per cent of GDP. This requirement is actively promoted by Trump, and European countries expect that fulfilment of these conditions will strengthen the US interest in European security.

As the authors of the article Laura Kayali and Victor Jack emphasise, the White House does not necessarily have to formally withdraw from the alliance to weaken it. It is enough to raise doubts about the automatic validity of the principle of collective defence - and that already undermines trust.

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda acknowledged that the alliance should have a frank discussion, "We need to make it clear that we understand Article 5 in the same way." He also added: "If Trump was indifferent to the future of NATO, he would not be pushing for 5 per cent."

Some summit participants emphasised that the new targets should be shared by all. Against the backdrop of Spain's claims that 2.1 per cent of GDP is enough to meet its commitments, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said, "The essence of the alliance is fair burden sharing."

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever, who had previously asked for flexibility, now emphasised commitment to common rules: "We accept common conditions for all 32 NATO countries. There can be no special conditions for anyone. We want to remain a reliable ally."

He jokingly added that if the head of Spain Pedro Sanchez really achieve NATO goals at this level of spending, then "he is just a financial genius".

We will remind, from 24 to 25 June in The Hague is held NATO summit. One of the key events was the meeting of the Ukraine-NATO Council.

Earlier, the mass media, which got acquainted with the draft final communiqué, reported that the document would not contain a direct promise to admit Ukraine to the alliance, despite the previous wording about the "inevitability of membership".

Yesterday, 24 June, the White House confirmed that Trump might hold a bilateral meeting with Zelensky on the margins of the summit. Later, the head of the Ukrainian presidential office, Andriy Yermak, also confirmed this.