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Trump’s ‘disappointment’ with Nato lays groundwork for ‘one of the most important’ summits ever, Rubio says – Europe live | World news
Trump’s ‘disappointment’ with Nato will be discussed at ‘one of the most important summits in history of Nato’ in Ankara, Rubio says
Rubio begins with thanks to Sweden for hosting the ministerial meeting.
But that’s where the niceties end as says the upcoming Ankara summit will be “one of the more important leaders’ summit in the history of Nato,” as the leaders will have to respond to Trump’s “disappointment” with the alliance’s “response to our operations in the Middle East.”
“That will have to be addressed, that won’t be solved or addressed today. That’s something for the leaders level to discuss.”
He notes the US announcement on Poland, but adds “the United States continues to have global commitments that it needs to meet in terms of our force deployment, and that constantly requires us to reexamine where we put troops.”
“This is not a punitive thing, it’s just something that’s ongoing, and it was pre-existing,” he says.
He says there’s plenty of scope to work with Nato on defence industrial base.
Key events
Asked about Russian shadow fleet ships, he again says it’s all confidential and he can’t say too much about it, but insists the renewed push to counter the fleet makes “the Russians take note of this, and that it is big, big irritant to them.”
Rutte gets also asked if Rubio leaves Sweden less disappointed about the allied behaviour over the last few months when it comes to Nato’s response to the Iran war.
Again, he launches into a very lengthy and complex answer, outlining the US frustrations with Nato, but insists most of them have been addressed, and the Europeans “heard” the US points.
Rutte gets asked if he has any update on the planned – or potential – US changes to its readiness to respond to a potential crisis, after suggestions the US could lower its contribution to Nato’s readiness forces, the Nato Force Model.
He gives a really complicated answer, but effectively it boils down to: something is changing behind the scenes, but I can’t tell you what it is.
“What is playing out now, at the moment, at the level of policy directors, is US contribution to the Nato Force Model, so that is a process now ongoing, but hey, we are prepared for this,” he says.
He says it’s obvious the US needs to make sure it has “all the capabilities and all the key enablers are everywhere where we need them” and that leaves more space for European and Canadian allies.
But overall, he says, “this is highly classified, because we don’t want to make anyone any wiser.”
“This is nothing new. Everybody knew this was happening, and it has nothing to do with the fact that the US wants to equalise the burden. It has to do with the fact that they cannot be everywhere at the same time.”
He then gets pushed on this answer and whether he can confirm that there is something changing. He deflects the question, and says it’s all “highly classified.”
Zelenskyy invited to join Nato summit in Ankara, Rutte confirms
Asked about Ukraine, Rutte praises their fight against Russia, and notes that “there are even reports that Ukraine is in net terms regaining territory, not massively, but at least it’s stabilising, and potentially even moving now in the right direction.”
“I would not be too happy if I was Putin today – I would never be happy if I was Putin – but particularly not the last couple of weeks, because things are not going in the right direction.”
He confirms that Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy will be invited to join the summit in Ankara.
“I invited him already … He will be there, like in The Hague.”
Rutte gets asked about the meeting today and how it turned out after some pretty fierce disagreements between the members in recent months.
Ever an optimist, he insists it was “a very good meeting,” while cheekily adding that as “this is a democratic alliance, we will always have debates.”
But he stresses “the difference is huge” if you compare to where Nato was two years ago.
He adds that the alliance still needs to keep changing, and “we have to make sure that the summit in Ankara really delivers.”
Asked if Europe should prepare to defend itself without the US, he rejects the premise of the question.
“We are not preparing for that last part of your question,” he says, but also repeats his lines on making Nato stronger through stronger European element.
“What you will see over the coming years is a more equal, as a shift, a credible shift, where the Europeans take this bigger responsibility with the United States firmly anchored in the transatlantic relationship,” he says.
On Ukraine, Rutte just repeats his key lines from yesterday, stressing the need to keep supporting and funding Ukraine and its purchases through the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List.
On Iran, he criticises its actions in regard to the strait of Hormuz, echoing Rubio’s earlier call for all countries to oppose their attempts to restrict freedom of navigation.
And we’re going to Q&A.
Nato’s commitment to Article 5 ‘ironclad’ with ‘absolute’ resolve to defend ‘every ally,’ Nato’s Rutte says
Rutte begins by repeating his usual lines on investing in defence, “producing the capabilities we need,” and continuing support for Ukraine.
He makes a point by saying that increased defence spending is one thing as member states gradually build towards the 5% GDP target agreed last year in The Hague, but “it isn’t an end in itself.”
He stresses the need to build industrial defence capacity so “we become more capable, so that we can further strengthen our armed forces and ensure they have the equipment they need to deter any adversary and defend every ally.”
He then turns to the issue of making Nato “not only stronger, but also fairer,” which is a diplomatic phrase for Europe taking more responsibility for its defence.
But among growing provocations from Russia, he very pointedly repeats his warning to adversaries:
“I know some have been questioning that [transatlatic] bond, and perhaps even questioning the resolve of this alliance to remain united in the face of an adversary, so let me be crystal clear.
Allies’ commitment to Article Five is ironclad. Our resolve and ability to defend every ally is absolute. Were anyone to be foolish as to attack us, the response would be devastating.”
Rutte briefing media after Nato talks in Sweden
Here we go – Rutte is here to brief us on today’s Nato talks.
As always, you can watch along, but I will bring you all the key lines here.
‘Full-on summer heat’: western Europe braces for unusually high temperatures
Jon Henley Europe correspondent and Sam Jones in Madrid
In other news, a large swathe of western Europe is bracing for the first significant heat event of the summer, with temperatures forecast to rise to more than 10C above the norm and new monthly records for May expected to be set in possibly hundreds of places.
Temperatures across Portugal, Spain, France and the UK were expected to exceed 30C (86F) on Friday and into next week, reaching 32C in Paris and London and 35C in south-west France, with highs of up to 38C in the Guadiana and Guadalquivir regions of Spain.
“Both maximum and minimum temperatures are likely to reach unprecedented levels for the season in multiple regions, particularly the south-west, during a premature heat event that will be intense and last several days,” said Météo-France.
The French national weather forecaster said records were almost certain to be set for the highest May temperature recorded in France (30.5C in 2025), and the highest average temperature across the country on a day in May (22.8C in 2017).
It said the exceptional temperatures, likely to exceed previous records by three or four degrees in some cities such as Nantes and Brest, were caused by a heat dome, with hot air from Morocco trapped under the high pressure of a powerful anticyclone.
Météo-France said the temperatures expected in Brittany in particular were “quite remarkable so early in the pre-summer season”, and likely to exceed existing records by as many as three or more degrees.
It said climate breakdown meant that Europe, the world’s fastest-warming continent, could expect such exceptional heat events “more and more often and more and more prematurely, and to be more and more intense”.
Jakub Krupa
We are expecting to hear from Nato’s secretary general Mark Rutte and Sweden’s foreign minister Maria Malmer Stenergard in the next half hour as the Nato ministerial meeting in Helsingborg is expected to wrap up shortly.
I will bring you all of that when they show up.
One dead, nine injured in explosion at MOL petrochemical plant in Hungary
Meanwhile, Hungary’s health minister Zsolt Hegedűs confirmed that nine people were injured, including two seriously, in an explosion at a MOL plant in Tiszaújváros (9:50).
One person also died at the scene.
Hegedűs said that no toxic substances were released to the environment and there is no broader threat to the public.
Protests at new US consulate after Trump envoy says time for US ‘to put its footprint back’ on Greenland
Miranda Bryant
Nordic correspondent
In other news, hundreds of people protested against the opening of a new US consulate in Nuuk in Greenland yesterday after comments by the US special envoy that it was time for Washington “to put its footprint back” on the Arctic territory.
Many Greenlandic politicians, including the prime minister, said they would not attend the official opening on Thursday.
Protesters carried Greenlandic flags and signs that read “USA Asu” (Stop USA) and shouted “Greenland belongs to Greenlanders” outside the Greenlandic parliament before shouting “go home” outside the US consulate.
The US special envoy, Jeff Landry, arrived in Nuuk uninvited with a delegation including a doctor, who caused fury by saying he was there to “assess the medical needs of Greenland”. Landry briefly attended a business conference with the US ambassador to Denmark, Kenneth Lowery, and left Nuuk on Wednesday night.
During his visit, Landry told Agence France-Presse he thought it was “time for the US to put its footprint back on Greenland”.
He said:
“Greenland needs the US. I think that you’re seeing the president talk about increasing national security operations and repopulating certain bases in Greenland.”
Meanwhile, negotiations between the US, Greenland and Denmark are continuing, despite the fact Copenhagen is without a fully functioning government amid record-long coalition talks.
While Greenland’s prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, reiterated this week that the largely autonomous territory – a former Danish colony that remains part of the Danish kingdom – was not for sale, he also said Greenland was “obliged to find a solution” with the US.
Nato shooting down drone over Estonia sends message to Russia, Romanian minister says
Meanwhile, Romanian deputy defence minister Sorin Moldovan said at the Globsec Forum in Prague that the shooting down of a drone in Estonian airspace earlier this week sends a clear message to Russia that incursions into Nato airspace will not be tolerated.
Speaking before the summit kicked off, German foreign minister Johann Wadephul said Berlin will spend more than 4% of the country’s GDP on defence this year and is on its way to the new target of 5%, Reuters reported.
Germany will suggest intensifying defence cooperation with Ukraine with the goal to speed up production, Wadephul said.
Rubio’s tone on Trump’s ‘disappointment’ suggests fireworks in Ankara – snap analysis
Jakub Krupa
Going by Rubio’s tone on Trump’s disappointment with Nato and how this is something that will have to be discussed by the leaders in Ankara, it’s clear we will be hearing a lot about it in the coming weeks.
Calling it “one of the most important summits in the history of Nato” is Trumpesque in its style, and sounds almost like a warning.
‘Some slight progress’ in talks with Iran, Rubio says
Rubio then goes into Iran in a bit more detail, saying there has been “some slight progress” in talks with Teheran.
“I don’t want to exaggerate it, but there’s been a little bit of movement, and that’s good. The fundamentals remain the same. Iran can never have a nuclear weapon, it just cannot.”
He says the US needs to “address the issue of the highly enriched uranium,” and restore the freedom of navigation in the strait of Hormuz.
“Iran is trying to create a tolling system. They’re trying to convince Oman, by the way, to join them in this tolling system in an international waterway. There is not a country in the world that should accept that.”
He says the the US has a draft UN resolution it’s working on with Bahrain, with “the highest number of co-sponsors of any resolution ever before the Security Council.”
“Unfortunately, a couple of countries on the Security Council are thinking about vetoing it. That would be lamentable. We are you doing everything we can, though, to achieve the sort of global consensus that’s necessary to prevent this from happening, and we’re trying to use the United Nations. Let’s see if the United Nations still works.”
He says that “almost every country” represented at Nato has signed as a co-sponsor, and he hopes the remaining few “soon will.”
He then ends on a slightly upbeat note, saying he is hoping for “a good meeting today” to “set the groundwork for the leaders to meet in about six weeks.”
And that ends his briefing.
The family of Shaun Burton, say they are “devastated” by the loss.
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Key events
In the opening half an hour against Cape Verde, Mikel Oyarzabal, the centre-forward, did not get a single touch.
Kyle Green gets in touch: “Your highlighting of Lalas and his absurdity is something that has prevented me from wanting to watch the coverage on Fox. While every channel has its pros and cons I just can’t.
“I’m 45 and probably the youngest of anyone who remembers him as a player instead of an opinionated insert insult here. As for the match this could be more competitive than it looks on paper Spain need a win the pressure is on them. Saudi Arabia could hold out for a draw and see what happens in their last match. “
News from the England camp, and it seems to be good news on Declan Rice.
“I’m ready and fit, raring to go. I was feeling a little bit of neural pain in my hamstring, which I was managing from after Christmas with Arsenal for a very long time. Obviously, not a lot of people would have known that. It was all behind-the-scenes stuff but it was a smart decision.
“In the end, that last 20 minutes is probably where you pick up the most, and it’s where you play a 70-minute match. But that last 20 is where you really feel your body going for it. And I think it was a smart decision because the last few days I felt really, really good.”
Alex Reid has penned today’s weekend special Football Daily.
Portugal v Uzbekistan on Tuesday enticingly pits the incredibly nice, incredibly 41-year-old-superstar-tolerant Roberto Martínez against Fabio Cannavaro, who’s won a Ballon d’Or as a player and the Chinese Super League as a coach. While the fixture following that game really does see the dream of Thomas Tuchel – in his first international job with England – taking on Queiroz, who is in charge of his ninth national side with Ghana.
The expected formations are 4-2-3-1 for Spain, and 5-3-2 for the Saudi Arabians.
The Saudi team features two Donis changes: Ali Lajami, a defender, and Nasser Al Dawsari, a midfielder, are preferred to Mohammed Abu Al Shamat and Mohamed Kanno. You may recall Salem Al Dawsari, the Saudi captain, as the man who scored the winner against Argentina.
An entertaining read, even for those of us who have just seen the clips.
In a conversation where his co-panelist is casually reminiscing about his days playing alongside Messi or exchanging shirts with Ronaldo Nazário at the World Cup, what exactly is Lalas going to talk about – coming on as a second-half substitute for Earnie Stewart in a friendly against Scotland in 1998? Helping the Kansas City Wizards finish last in the 1999 MLS Western Conference? Did Lalas enjoy an elite playing career? No. But does he do the background reading that could compensate for his relative lack of standing in a conversation with titans like Henry and Zlatan? Also no. But is he charming or funny or charismatic or otherwise magnetic on screen? Eh, no.
For the record, I once interviewed Alexi Lalas on the challenge of playing against Romario in the 1994 World Cup. He had this to say:
“He could kill you in so many different ways. If you remember from that World Cup, he scored so many types of goals. That ranged from solo adventures to an outside-of-the-right-foot half-volley off a corner kick. Romario was both the most difficult to play against and the best that I have faced.
“Roberto Baggio was doing his thing, but in terms of consistency and living up to the hype, he [Romario] was the best. As with all stars, there was a moment when the fans sit up in their seats, and that was a feeling I got with Romario. When it got close to him and the potential for his involvement in a play was there, everybody sat up in their seat. They knew that something spectacular would be happening.”
Saturday’s match reports here.
The Saudi Arabia coach, and Blackburn legend, Georgios Donis, spoke about the challenges facing his team: “Spain is not the same team when Yamal or Williams are on the bench.
“While they still have plenty of possession, they lack the individual one-on-one penetration when these two are missing. I’m not saying it’s a problem for Spain, but when those players are missing, they play in a different way. We saw this very clearly against Cape Verde.
“We are playing against one of the best teams in the world, and it’s very important that when you play against these kinds of teams, you should enjoy the experience and respect the opponent, but not too much.
“It is very hard for any team playing against Spain to have any time in possession. So what we must do is to be more in control of our movement and compact, and when the ball goes through the lines, be able to defend dynamically.
“It’s nice to see miracles in football, and we’ve seen favourites losing against underdogs. Of course, it’s great for Saudi football to have a great memory of the result against Argentina, but we aren’t drawing anything from that.
“I think we’ll feel more pressure in that [Cape Verde] game than we will against Spain.”
The Spain coach, Luis De La Fuente had this to say in his Saturday press conference: “This generation of footballers is highly competitive and really fired up… It’s going to be a completely different story,” he said at his pre-match press conference on Saturday. There is no drama or crisis. The bottom line is simply that we need to win tomorrow.”
Four changes for Spain: Lamine Yamal, Pedro Porro, Dani Olmo and Alex Baena also come into the side with Marcos Llorente, Fabian Ruiz, Ferran Torres and Gavi dropping out.
The teams – Lamine Yamal starts
Spain: Simon, Porro, Cubarsi, Laporte, Cucurella, Gonzalez, Rodri, Yamal, Olmo, Baena, Oyarzabal. Subs: Raya, Joan Garcia, Pubill, Grimaldo, Eric Garcia, Llorente, Merino, Torres, Fabian, Gavi, Pino, Williams, Zubimendi, Munoz, Iglesias.
Saudi Arabia: Al Owais, Abdulhamid, Tambakti, Lajami, Al Amri, Al Harbi, Nasser Al Dawsari, Al Khaibari, Al Juwayr, Al Buraikan, Salem Al Dawsari. Subs: Al Aqidi, Al Kassar, Majrashi, Yahya, Al Shehri, Al Boushal, Kadesh, Al Johani, Al Ghannam, Al Hajji, Al Hamdan, Mandash, Kanno, Thakri, Abu Al Shamat.
Referee: Raphael Claus (Brazil)
Perhaps one of the Saudi -players can write themselves into this high-grade selection?
Perhaps it can be their goalkeeper.
Madrid screening of Spain v Saudi Arabia cancelled due to heat
The public screening of Spain’s World Cup match against Saudi Arabia in Madrid on Sunday has been cancelled because of extreme heat forecast for the Spanish capital, officials said.
The match, due to kick off at 6pm local time on Sunday, had been scheduled to be shown on a giant screen installed by the Spanish football federation (RFEF) at a fan zone in Plaza de Colón in central Madrid.
Madrid city council and the federation decided to cancel the screening after national weather agency AEMET issued an orange heat warning – the second-highest level – for the Madrid region, with temperatures forecast to reach 40C.
“The decision has been taken with the aim of protecting the health of attendees, event staff and support services involved in the event,” Madrid city hall said in a statement, apologising for any inconvenience.
Officials urged supporters to watch the match indoors in air-conditioned spaces and avoid prolonged exposure to the heat.
Large parts of Spain are experiencing unusually high temperatures for June as a mass of hot air from North Africa moves across the Iberian Peninsula.
A total of 13 of Spain’s 17 regions are on orange alert for heat on Sunday, while the northern Basque Country bordering France is on red alert, the highest level.
Authorities advised residents and visitors to take precautions during the heatwave, including drinking water regularly, staying in cool environments, limiting outdoor physical activity during the hottest hours of the day and taking extra care of vulnerable people. AFP
Can Saudi Arabia repeat the magic of 2022?
Argentina arrived in Qatar on a 36-game unbeaten run. When Lionel Messi opened the scoring from the penalty spot after 10 minutes, a comfortable afternoon seemed in the offing. Saleh al-Shehri and Salem al-Dawsari had other ideas, Argentina had three goals disallowed for offside in the space of 13 minutes and the greatest comeback in Saudi Arabia football history was made. Argentina went on to lift the trophy, while defeats to Poland and Mexico meant the Saudis did not reach the knock-out stage.
Unai Simon over David Raya is a controversial choice for De la Fuentes. The Arsenal keeper could lay claim to being Europe’s best this season.
“Those at the Champions League final had a few more days, so I got there on the Wednesday night,” Raya says. “I arrived a bit before Fabián [Ruiz]. I was saying hello to some of the others in reception when he arrived. I went to say congratulations; that was almost the first thing I did. I couldn’t really talk [to him] after the final; I just didn’t have it in me. The next day we talked about the game properly. Just two mates chatting … I was happy for him that he could lift the trophy for a second time.”
A high pressure game for the European champions, as Sid Lowe reports.
“If we had scored one, the game would have changed,” Martín Zubimendi said. Immediately after the game, De la Fuente had offered a simple analysis: when the ball doesn’t want to go in it doesn’t want to go in, he insisted. Spain had racked up 27 shots, after all. Ferran Torres had hit the bar and seen another clear opportunity saved. Vozinha, the 40-year-old goalkeeper who stopped that, saved six more and was named the man of the match. “There’s nothing to reproach the team for,” Rodri said. “We generated chances but couldn’t put it away; the good thing is they created almost nothing.”
We wait to see what role Lamine Yamal will play today. His coach would surely like to be able to use him.
The worst mistake we could make would be to compare him to anyone. He is the midst of a process. He has exceptional footballing maturity and lives it all with total naturalness. He has great serenity and strength. We have to let him follow his path but those players who have something different are ready for that. They’re geniuses, like Dalí [who] can paint a picture, or Michelangelo. They’re different. What is exceptional to us, isn’t to them. In those extremes, they feel comfortable. Why? Because they are different. What we think is exceptional, they consider normal.
Preamble
Spain’s campaign did not get off to a flying start, and Luis de la Fuentes may wake up in the night to visions of Cape Verde’s Vozinha. He will have Georgia on his mind ever since Monday. Saudi Arabia are no pushovers and gave Uruguay a scare in their opening match. Memories of downing Argentina four years ago still abound, and so Spain might beware. They can ill afford to go into the final game with Uruguay at a disadvantage. All eyes on Lamine Yamal, whose fitness situation remains opaque, though Spain need their other forwards to come to the party.
Kick-off 5pm UK, 1pm ET, 2am AEST. Join me.
A topless man can be seen driving erratically in Edinburgh before abandoning his car and attacking a black man and a delivery rider.
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