NATO

March 7, 2025 10:09 AM

Trump: If NATO members don’t pay, US won’t defend them

U.S. President Donald Trump cast doubt on Thursday on his willingness to defend Washington's NATO allies, saying he would not do so if they are not paying enough for their own defense. "It's common sense, right," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "If they don't pay, I'm not going to defend them. No, I'm not going to defend them." Trump said he has been of this view for years and shared it with NATO allies during his 2017-2021 presidential term. Those efforts prompted more spending from ...

February 25, 2025 9:02 PM

After Trump comments, Kremlin reaffirms opposition to European peacekeepers in Ukraine

The Kremlin, asked about an assertion by U.S. President Donald Trump that Russia was open to European peacekeepers being deployed in Ukraine, referred reporters to an earlier statement that such a move would be unacceptable to Moscow. Russia has repeatedly said it opposes having NATO troops on the ground in Ukraine, with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov saying last week that Moscow would view that as a "direct threat" to Russia's sovereignty, even if the troops operated there under a different fl...

February 24, 2025 10:04 AM

Zelenskiy says he is willing to quit presidency if it means peace in Ukraine

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday he was willing to give up his position if it meant peace in Ukraine, adding that he could exchange his departure for his country's entry into the NATO military alliance. "If (it means) peace for Ukraine, if you really need me to leave my post, I am ready," an irritated-looking Zelenskiy said when asked during a press conference whether he was ready to leave his post if it meant securing peace. "I can exchange this for NATO (membership), if...

February 19, 2025 10:39 AM

US, Russia forge ahead on peace talks, without Ukraine

U.S. President Donald Trump's administration said on Tuesday it had agreed to hold more talks with Russia on ending the war in Ukraine after an initial meeting that excluded Kyiv, a departure from Washington's previous approach that rallied U.S. allies to isolate Russian President Vladimir Putin. As the 4-1/2-hour meeting in the Saudi capital was underway, Russia hardened its demands, notably insisting it would not tolerate the granting membership to Ukraine. Later on Tuesday, Trump said he ...

February 14, 2025 5:31 PM

Hegseth tells Europe to spend on defence as US presence may not last forever

European countries need to invest now in defence because it is not possible to assume that the United States' presence on the continent will last forever, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Friday during a visit to Warsaw. Pointing to Poland, which plans to spend 4.7% of GDP on defence this year, as a model ally, Hegseth doubled down on Washington's demands that European NATO allies take on more of the financial burden for their own security. "What happens five or 10 or 15 years from ...

January 24, 2025 2:29 PM

Risk of clash between nuclear powers is growing, Russian security official says

Russian security official Sergei Shoigu warned in an interview published on Friday that the risk of an armed clash between nuclear powers was rising. Shoigu, the secretary of President Vladimir Putin’s Security Council, told TASS news agency: “Against the backdrop of increasing conflict and aggravation of geopolitical rivalry in the world, the risks of a violent clash between major states, including with the participation of nuclear powers, are growing.” The former defence minister said ...

January 24, 2025 10:29 AM

Trump says he is not sure US should be spending anything on NATO

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he was not sure the United States should be spending anything on NATO, telling reporters the U.S. was protecting NATO members, but they were "not protecting us." Trump repeated demands that other members of the transatlantic alliance spend 5% of their gross domestic product (GDP) on defense – a huge increase from the current 2% goal and a level that no NATO country, including the United States, currently reaches. "I'm not sure we should be spendin...

December 23, 2024 3:03 PM

NATO chief Rutte says Zelenskiy’s criticism of Germany’s Scholz is unfair

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said he considered the sometimes harsh criticism of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to be unjustified, news wire DPA reported. Although Germany has been a vital ally of Ukraine, its hesitation in providing long-range Taurus cruise missiles has been a source of frustration in Kyiv, which is battling a foe armed with a powerful array of long-range weaponry. "I have often told Zelenskiy that he should stop criticising Olaf...

November 6, 2024 6:14 PM

Trump victory to reverberate through global economy

Donald Trump's victory in the race to become the next U.S. president will have economic consequences for the rest of the world that are likely to be deep and quite immediate. If Trump enacts just a fraction of his pledges - from higher trade tariffs to deregulation, more oil drilling and more demands on America's NATO partners - the strain on government finances, inflation, economic growth and interest rates will be felt in every corner of the world. Trump recaptured the White House on Wednesd...

October 30, 2024 3:43 PM

Trump and Harris seek votes in battleground North Carolina with six days to go

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump will make some of their final election pitches to voters on Wednesday in North Carolina, a swing state with a Democratic governor that has backed Republican presidential hopefuls for over a decade. North Carolina has 16 Electoral College votes, making it one of the make-or-break battleground states that could decide who wins the Nov. 5 election. The contest between Harris and Trump is too close to call nationally, and last month's hurricane damage has made North ...