NATO, top Republicans question US troop withdrawal from Germany
- 03-May-2026
NATO said on Saturday it was working with the United States to understand Washington’s decision to withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany as a rift in transatlantic ties deepens over the Middle East war. The Pentagon’s announcement of the troop withdrawal follows a spat between US President Donald Trump and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who said […]
NATO alliance, bruised by Trump, considers end to annual summits
- 27-Apr-2026
WASHINGTON/BRUSSELS: NATO is considering ending its recent practice of holding annual summits, six sources told Reuters, a move that could avoid a potentially tense encounter with U.S. President Donald Trump in his final year in office. Trump’s administration has engaged repeatedly in scathing criticism of many of the U.S.-led defence alliance’s 31 other members, most […]
NATO allies refuse to join Trump’s Iranian port blockade
- 14-Apr-2026
NATO allies said on Monday they would not get involved in U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan to blockade Iranian ports, proposing to intervene only once fighting ends, in a move likely to anger Trump and increase strains in the alliance. Trump said the U.S. military would eliminate any Iranian ships that came near the blockade […]
NATO’s Rutte tells allies Trump wants Hormuz pledges within days, diplomats say
- 10-Apr-2026
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has told European governments that US President Donald Trump wants concrete commitments within days to help secure the Strait of Hormuz, diplomats said on Thursday, as the alliance faces US threats to leave. Rutte, known in Europe as a “Trump whisperer”, is working to defuse a crisis after Trump said […]
Pentagon declines to reaffirm NATO’s collective defense, says up to Trump
- 31-Mar-2026
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth declined on Tuesday to reaffirm the U.S. commitment to NATO’s collective defense, saying that would be up to President Donald Trump after European allies had failed to stand with the United States in the war against Iran. The remarks by Hegseth at a Pentagon briefing were extraordinary, given that collective defense […]
‘Great crackdown’: Russia tightens the screws on the internet
- 20-Mar-2026
MOSCOW—Office workers toiling with blocked internet. Teenagers are continually forced to switch VPNs. Taxi drivers struggling to find their way around Moscow without online navigation. The Kremlin is flexing its muscles over the internet. The government is periodically jamming the web in regions across Russia while restricting messaging services Telegram and WhatsApp and taking down […]
NATO intercepts second Iran missile in Turkish airspace
- 09-Mar-2026
NATO said it shot down a second ballistic missile fired from Iran in Turkish airspace on Monday, prompting a stern warning from Turkey to Tehran not to take “provocative steps”. It was the second such incident in the skies over NATO member Turkey in five days, leading the alliance to stress its readiness “to defend […]
NATO says beefing up Baltic presence after Denmark drone sightings
- 28-Sep-2025
BRUSSELS: NATO has “enhanced vigilance” in the Baltic after what Copenhagen called an intrusion of unwelcome drones into Danish airspace, a spokesperson for the defence alliance said. The reinforced measures “include multiple intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance platforms and at least one air-defence frigate” in the region to the west of Russia, alliance spokesman Martin O’Donnell […]
West, Russia clash at UN after incidents in NATO air space
- 23-Sep-2025
NATO allies accused Russia at the United Nations (UN) on Monday of violating the alliance’s air space in Estonia and Poland — actions that Britain said risked triggering an armed conflict. Confronting Russia at a meeting of the United Nations Security Council, British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “Your reckless actions risk direct armed confrontation […]
NATO commits to spending hike sought by Trump, and to mutual defence
- 25-Jun-2025
THE HAGUE, June 25: NATO leaders on Wednesday backed the big increase in defence spending that U.S. President Donald Trump had demanded, and restated their commitment to defend each other from attack after a brief summit in the Netherlands. While Trump got what he wanted at the annual meeting, tailor-made for him, his NATO allies […]