The United States has publicly raised the issue of internal rifts within the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) over the response to the Middle East war. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said President Donald Trump is disappointed with the response of some European allies and said the issue should be addressed at the NATO summit in July.
According to Reuters and others, Minister Rubio said at a NATO foreign ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, southern Sweden, on the 22nd (local time), "To be honest, the president is disappointed with some NATO allies' response to operations in the Middle East."
Minister Rubio said the NATO summit to be held in early next month in Ankara, Türkiye, "will be one of the most important summits in NATO's history." The implication is that leaders will have to respond to President Trump's complaints.
He said, "This issue must be addressed, but it will not be resolved today," adding, "It is a matter that should be discussed at the leaders' level."
President Trump has expressed strong dissatisfaction with European countries for not helping the United States in the war with Iran. He has repeatedly hinted at the possibility of leaving NATO.
This foreign ministers' meeting is largely aimed at coordinating the agenda for the NATO summit in July. European member states were said to have emphasized that they are increasing defense spending to soothe President Trump's dissatisfaction. They also sought to highlight that they are ready to contribute to ensuring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz after the war.
In this context, Minister Rubio's renewed mention of the president's disappointment is seen as making clear that the issue of transatlantic division will be a core agenda item at the next NATO summit. It is being interpreted as a warning that if the summit fails to mend the rift, it could burden NATO's future cohesion.
Minister Rubio said, "NATO is important not only to Europe but also to the United States," adding, "The goal is to build a stronger NATO."
At the press conference after the foreign ministers' meeting, the issue of redeploying U.S. forces stationed in Europe also took center stage. Just before the meeting, President Trump said he would send 5,000 additional U.S. troops to Poland, and earlier he had disclosed a plan to reduce U.S. forces in Germany by 5,000.
Minister Rubio, addressing Europe's concerns about the reduction of U.S. forces in Germany, said it was "not a punitive measure but part of the ongoing redeployment of U.S. troops." He said, "The United States has obligations to fulfill globally, and we must continuously reassess where to place forces with regard to force deployments."
He added, "Allies were well aware that U.S. forces stationed in Europe would be adjusted," and "This work has been carried out in coordination with allies, so it is not a surprise to anyone." Minister Rubio said, "We have missions in the Indo-Pacific, the Middle East and the Western Hemisphere as well."
On the war in Ukraine, Minister Rubio said peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have "unfortunately yielded no results" so far. He added that the United States is prepared to continue playing the role of mediator.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte held a bilateral meeting with Minister Rubio. While acknowledging that behind-the-scenes discussions are underway regarding the redeployment of U.S. forces, Rutte said the matter is "highly classified" and did not disclose specifics.
The U.S. State Department said Minister Rubio and Secretary-General Rutte discussed allies' increases in defense spending, the Ankara NATO summit, the expansion of defense production among NATO member states, and ways to promote freedom of navigation and maritime security in key international waters.