Trump says the NATO meeting was a success as Europe takes on a defensive role

For years, President Donald Trump has criticized NATO’s European allies for relying too much on the United States for military protection. Heading into July’s NATO summit, disagreements over Iran and defense spending threaten to overshadow what was expected to be a key meeting for the alliance.

Instead, Trump administration officials believe the summit showed that Trump’s year-long pressure campaign is starting to pay off.

“The conference was a great success,” Matthew Whitaker, the US ambassador to NATO, told Fox News Digital in an interview. “I think President Trump has got a NATO that is very powerful and very powerful and equal to the United States.”

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And while Whitaker described the coalition’s trajectory as very positive, he admitted that not all of his colleagues are moving at the same pace.

“I know exactly where everyone I work with is,” he said. “I make phone calls and visit depending on where the partners are arguing.”

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At the 2025 NATO summit in The Hague, the allies agreed to increase defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035, a significant increase from the alliance’s long-standing benchmark of 2%. In 2026, Whitaker said he monitors each partner’s progress on a monthly dashboard.

Whitaker said the administration believes years of pressure from Trump are beginning to produce the kind of alliance the president has envisioned: one in which Europe takes on greater responsibility for defense while allowing the U.S. to focus more on other global priorities.

He praised Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Greece and Turkey for aggressively increasing defense spending while pointing to Spain, France, Italy and the United Kingdom as countries that continue to watch closely.

“I think Spain will eventually fulfill its obligations,” Whitaker said. “They can be a good ally. They have a very strong and growing economy that can support more defense spending.”

Spain emerged as the most contentious area for management during the conference.

Trump called the country a “bad partner” and a “wasted cause,” threatened to cut off trade and criticized Madrid for starting to resist NATO’s new 5% defense spending goal and refusing to allow the US to use Spanish bases and airspace while operating against Iran.

Whitaker pointed to nearly $150 billion in additional joint defense spending over the past year and a growing push to expand defense production in Europe as evidence that the alliance is moving in the direction the Trump administration has long sought.

“We will fix the priorities,” he said. “And first is our home country and our Western Hemisphere. The Pacific is where we’re going to be able to do it and we’re ready, and Europe is fourth on the list.”

“That does not mean that we are leaving Europe, it does not mean that we are abandoning our colleagues,” he said. “It means that we expect them to take over the defense of the continent.”

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President Donald Trump holds a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the NATO leaders’ summit in Ankara, Turkey, on July 8, 2026. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)

Even as allies celebrate the new spending commitments, European officials agree that reshaping the continent will require years of sustained political support, increased industrial capacity and tough budget decisions before the alliance can reach the strength envisioned in Ankara.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte has repeatedly stressed that governments must now present “clear, concrete and credible plans” to achieve targets rather than simply making political commitments.

The conference also came as the administration reviewed the status of American forces in Europe, which raised questions among allies – especially those in eastern NATO – about what sharing of the greater burden could mean for the presence of the US military in the future.

The administration says that the review of the power situation is directly related to the sharing of the burden: if Europe takes more responsibility for the defense of the continent, Washington can reassess where and how the US forces are used.

In recent weeks, the Trump administration has sent mixed signals on military deployments, including a freeze on patrols in Poland, a subsequent announcement of additional forces and the launch of a comprehensive review of US military posture on the continent.

Allied countries such as Poland have argued that its heavy investment in defense and a strategic position should be reflected in a strong US military presence. Whitaker said high-spending allies should expect deeper engagement with Washington but stressed that decisions about the US military’s posture are driven by broader global security considerations rather than spending on a single country.

The conference also came as the administration reviewed the status of American forces in Europe, which raised questions among allies – especially those in eastern NATO – about what sharing of the greater burden could mean for the presence of the US military in the future. (Jens Büttner/photo alliance via Getty Images)

“It’s a continuous assessment of where we need to spread out, where we can put our forces, and how we block and defend,” said Whitaker. “It’s a difficult conversation, but it’s one we’re having right now with the government and our partners.”

For Whitaker, the burden-sharing debate is no longer just about how much money his colleagues spend.

The big question, he said, is whether those funds translate into the military power Europe will need to take on a larger share of its defense.

Those commitments that go beyond spending goals and into the types of military capabilities NATO partners are expected to implement over the next decade.

Germany has announced plans to acquire US-made Tomahawk cruise missiles, giving Europe’s biggest economy long-range strike power that Chancellor Friedrich Merz said would close a key gap in Germany’s defense. The purchase is part of a broader effort by European allies to rebuild military capabilities that have been successful since the end of the Cold War.

Whitaker said the Tomahawk purchase is one example of the capabilities NATO allies will need in the coming years.

“It’s the way up,” he said. “Whether it’s frigates, whether it’s air defense, whether it’s deep strike, whether it’s tanks and drones, all that needs to be increased in power generation.

The conference also emphasized the growing emphasis on increasing defense production across the alliance.

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Trump announced that Ukraine would be allowed to establish domestic production of Patriot missiles, and Lockheed Martin revealed plans to help establish a Patriot Advanced Capability-3 facility in Europe. Other deals included increased European production of Army Tactical Missile Systems, Stinger missiles and additional air defense systems through cooperation between US and European defense firms.

The White House touted those announcements as evidence of what it called a new “NATO 3.0” model, arguing that greater defense investment in Europe would strengthen the alliance and create demand for American defense manufacturers.

Administration officials said more than $3 billion in defense deals and partnerships announced during the summit will support American industry while expanding Europe’s ability to build critical military capabilities near the continent.