NATO leaders have unveiled defence contracts worth more than $72 billion at their summit in Türkiye, in a major show of military investment — but the gathering was overshadowed by sharp criticism from US President Donald Trump, who refused to rule out pulling more American troops from Europe and declared he was "very disappointed" with the alliance.
Record Arms Deals Dominate the NATO Summit Agenda
The two-day summit produced a raft of significant procurement agreements, with the combined value estimated at at least $72 billion, according to a NATO official. Among the headline deals, European nations agreed to purchase surveillance drones from US defence giant Northrop Grumman, while NATO itself committed to buying aircraft from Swedish manufacturer Saab.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte set the tone before the summit began, describing European defence spending increases as "staggering" and calling for nothing short of a defence industry "revolution" across the alliance. He pointed to surging military expenditure by Russia, alongside growing threats from China, North Korea and Iran, as reasons for urgency.
"We don't have the luxury of time. We need capabilities now to ensure we remain ready," Rutte said.
Europe's defence sector has long been criticised as fragmented and slowed by bureaucratic red tape, with rivalries between national industries and companies hampering cohesion. Weak economic growth and the political difficulty of scaling back welfare spending have also made the case for higher defence budgets a hard one to prosecute across the continent.
Trump Warns of Further Troop Withdrawals, Singles Out Britain, France, Germany and Italy
Despite the scale of the arms agreements, Trump used the summit to deliver a pointed rebuke to several key NATO members. Speaking alongside Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Trump declined to rule out withdrawing additional US troops from Europe and said the alliance had failed to adequately support America during its conflict with Iran.
"Well, we're going to see. I was very disappointed with NATO," Trump told reporters, specifically calling out Britain, France, Germany and Italy for not doing enough.
Trump insisted the US "weren't treated well" by its allies, even while simultaneously stating he had not wanted or needed their assistance. His remarks reflect a pattern of confrontational dealings with international partners that has defined his presidency.
Trump's relationship with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni emerged as a particular flashpoint. He said the two had fallen out because she "refused to help us" with Iran. "She refused to get involved so it soured my relationship with her a little bit. But I like her. I think she's a nice person, actually. But I think she made a mistake," Trump said.
Greenland, Türkiye Tensions Add to Summit Friction
Further straining the atmosphere, Trump again asserted that Greenland "should be controlled by the United States, not by Denmark" — a claim he made during the press conference with Erdoğan, despite Denmark being a fellow NATO member. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen pushed back firmly, stating she expected all allies to respect Danish sovereignty and that Greenland was simply not for sale.
On a more conciliatory note with Ankara, Trump agreed to lift US sanctions on Türkiye that had been in place since 2020, imposed after the country purchased Russian air defence missile systems. He also signalled a willingness to approve the sale of F-35 fighter jets to Türkiye, a long-standing point of contention between the two NATO members.
Alliance Unity Under Strain Despite Spending Milestone
Leaders at the summit were hoping to project a united front, particularly after tensions exposed during the Iran conflict revealed fault lines within an alliance that has underpinned Western security since the end of World War II. The billions in arms agreements represent a tangible effort by European nations to answer American demands to shoulder more of their own defence burden — but Trump's warnings and pointed criticism suggest the pressure is far from over.
The summit also comes at a time when tensions over Ukraine have already placed significant strain on NATO cohesion, leaving the bloc navigating multiple simultaneous pressure points as it attempts to modernise and expand its collective defence capabilities.
