Donald Trump sat alongside NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at a summit, according to Bluesky. During the meeting, Trump criticized NATO, called Iran’s leadership “scum” and “sick people”, praised Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and threatened to cut off all trade with Spain over defence‑spending issues, as reported by Bluesky and The Hindu.

Mark Rutte said the disputes between Trump and other NATO leaders demonstrated the alliance’s democratic strength, should serve as a lesson for Russian President Vladimir Putin, and that he saw no need to change the way he deals with Trump, according to Almonitor.

Rutte told the BBC that Trump’s comments were like a “family argument”, added that NATO is stronger than ever, and said he was 100 % convinced of the U.S. president’s commitment to the alliance. He also said European countries are delivering by bolstering military budgets and taking more responsibility for continental defence, defended Trump’s criticism of the transatlantic security alliance, and said the summit showed a “huge sense of unity”, as reported by the BBC, The Hindu and the South China Morning Post.