NATO Wants Normalize Relations with Washington

Darwin, 23 May :

European NATO members on Friday met with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio to gain a clear understanding of Washington’s decision to reduce its troops.

At the same time, they are trying to ease President Donald Trump’s anger and normalize relations, so that the situation remains calm ahead of the summit in July.

The news was reported by AFP.

The meeting of NATO foreign ministers is being held in Helsingborg, Sweden. It comes at a time when U.S. President Donald Trump has sharply criticized Europe’s response to the Iran war issue and has even threatened that he could consider leaving NATO.

The sudden announcement by Washington to withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany, following a dispute between Trump and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, has put the 77-year-old alliance under pressure this month.

The Trump administration had previously stated that some troops would be withdrawn from Europe to focus more on other threats. However, the lack of proper coordination with European allies regarding the timing of this decision has caused concern, especially about U.S. reliability in the face of threats like Russia.

A European diplomat said one of the key objectives of the meeting in Helsingborg is to assess whether tensions between the U.S. and Europe have eased or whether relations have returned to normal ahead of the Ankara summit.

However, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that the president is unhappy because NATO allies have not offered sufficient support for Trump’s Iran policy.

He said, “They haven’t been asked to send troops or warplanes, yet they are doing nothing.”

NATO chief Mark Rutte did not consider the U.S. troop withdrawal to have a major impact. He said that the situation is generally proceeding normally as European allies strengthen their own defense capabilities.

He added, “We support this initiative, but it must be carried out in a way that strengthens overall deterrence and defense.”

Earlier, on Thursday, President Trump announced that he would send 5,000 U.S. troops to Poland. This is the opposite of an earlier decision, as Washington had previously canceled plans to deploy 4,000 troops there.

Trump said the decision to send troops to Poland was based on his personal relationship with the country’s President, Karol Nawrocki.

He described Nawrocki as a nationalist ally and said he was proud to have supported him in last year’s election.