Trump says US will ‘never forget’ lack of Nato help on Iran ahead of Rutte speech - Europe live

From 3h agoNato chief says Europe increased defence spending by 20% in 2025Nato’s Rutte says that on the back of the 2025 summit in the Hague, allies “took a historic decision to raise defence investment to 5% GDP,” with “significant progress” over the course of the year.“For the first time, all allies met the goal agreed in 2014 to invest at least 2% of their GDP on defence,” he adds.He notes that “we saw 20% increase in what Europe and Canada spent on defence in 2025 as compared with 2024.”“Continuing this crucial trend will be a priority in the years to come,” he says.He continues: “For too long, European allies and Canada were overreliant on US military might. We did not take enough responsibility for our own security. But there has been a real shift in mindset, a collective recognition of our changed security environment. And as a European, I am proud of what we are doing.” Key events11m ago'War in Iran is not NATO matter,' Finland's Stubb says in response to Trump's criticism35m agoDenmark's Frederiksen to begin exploratory coalition talks tomorrow1h agoRussia helps Iran with intelligence, drones to target US, EU's Kallas says, as she highlights impact on Ukraine2h agoPoland to cap fuel prices, cut taxes in bid to shield citizens from economic impact of Iran war3h agoHungary files espionage charges against top investigative journalist over claims about minister's phone calls with Russia3h ago'Russia remains most significant, dire threat,' Rutte says3h agoNato chief says Europe increased defence spending by 20% in 20253h agoNato's Rutte presents alliance's 2025 annual report4h agoEU accuses four pornographic platforms of breaking digital rules aimed to protect children4h agoEuropean Parliament advances EU-US trade deal, but adds safeguards – snap analysis4h agoMoney from oil and gas means Russia has more time for war against Ukraine, Zelenskyy says4h agoZelenskyy warns about risks posed by 'aggressive Russian regime'5h ago'Whatever Putin may tell himself, Russia is not winning' in Ukraine, Starmer says5h agoThreat from Russia 'has not gone away; in fact, has grown,' Starmer warns5h agoEuropean Parliament votes to advance EU-US tariff deal5h agoUS 'needs nothing' from NATO and will 'never forget' its lack of help on Iran, Trump says5h agoRussia wants to 'continue war, try to conquer as much as possible,' Lithuania's Nausėda warns5h agoMore interventions against Russian shadow fleet expected in coming weeks and months, Dutch PM says6h ago'Politeness will not work with Russia,' Estonia's Michal says6h agoEurope will keep asking US to play role in Ukraine talks, Norway's Støre says6h agoLatvia's Siliņa urges Europe to ramp up drone production6h ago'What Russia is doing is very concerning,' Sweden's PM warns6h agoProposed safeguards needed to guarantee certainty from 'relatively one-sided' deal, senior lawmaker says6h agoMorning opening: EU parliament set to vote on tariff deal with USShow key events onlyPlease turn on JavaScript to use this feature'War in Iran is not NATO matter,' Finland's Stubb says in response to Trump's criticismFinland’s president Alexander Stubb – sometimes described as a Trump whisperer among the European leaders – has been in the last few minutes speaking about Trump’s angry comments about NATO in the last few minutes (11:19)Icelandic prime minister Kristrún Mjöll Frostadóttir, Finnish president Alexander Stubb and Norwegian prime minister Jonas Gahr Støre attend a press conference after Joint Expeditionary Force JEF Leaders' Summit in Helsinki, Finland. Photograph: Markku Ulander/ReutersHere is his answer in full: “We’re very pragmatic with our transatlantic partnership. Part of it is value based, most of it is now interest based. I have said from the beginning that the US foreign policy is different from what it used to be. We should work on issues where there is a clear landing zone and [shared] interests – defence, NATO, [and] I guess in the Finnish case icebreakers – and then we should respectfully disagree on issues linked to international organisations or climate change or, say, the European Union. As far as the war in Iran is concerned, it is not a NATO matter because NATO is a defence alliance. … Of course, when the war is over, there will be probably countries that are willing to help to keep the strait of Hormuz open. That is one of the reasons that Finland, Norway … joined the declaration on the matter with 31 other countries. So we’re taking it, you know, day by day, and continue to work with the Americans.” Speaking alongside him, Norway’s Jonas Gahr Støre added: “I have not no sympathy for this Iranian regime. It has been terrorising its own people, denying their human rights, their freedom, rights, [and] killing their people when they’ve been standing up for their freedoms. They have also been spreading conflict and misery in the region. That being said, I will repeat what Norway has said from the start: this is not our war. It was initiated by the United States and Israel without consultation, [and] we believe this war, should end.” Denmark's Frederiksen to begin exploratory coalition talks tomorrowOver in Denmark, Mette Frederiksen is about to begin the exploratory talks on forming the next Danish government tomorrow.Social Democrats leader Mette Frederiksen attends a party leader debate in Copenhagen, Denmark yesterday. Photograph: Liselotte Sabroe/EPAThe outgoing prime minister – who hopes to remain in post with the new administration – will meet with the representatives of seven political parties tomorrow, including three left-wing parties, the centrist Moderates, and two right-wing “blue” parties.The seven invited parties combined would theoretically hold 129 out of 179 seats in the next parliament, but, well, it is a purely speculative thought at this stage as there is no indication that they would necessarily agree to form a government together.In fact, some of them have openly said they would not be prepared to work with some others in the invited group, so don’t expect an immediate breakthrough. This will take some time.Further meetings are planned for Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday, according to DR and TV2.Russia helps Iran with intelligence, drones to target US, EU's Kallas says, as she highlights impact on UkraineEU top diplomat Kaja Kallas has been speaking to reporters on the margins of the G7 meeting of foreign ministers in France in the last few minutes.EU top diplomat Kaja Kallas arrives for a G7 Foreign Ministers’ meeting for talks on Russia’s war in Ukraine and the Middle East situation at the Vaux-de-Cernay Abbey in Cernay-la-Ville outside Paris, France. Photograph: Alain Jocard/AFP/Getty ImagesShe said “we need to [find a way to] exit from the war, not escalate this further, because the consequences for everybody around the world are quite severe.”“All countries in the world are one way or [an]other way affected by this war, so it is in the interest of everybody that this war stops,” she says.She also added that “we can’t forget about Ukraine,” worrying that oil price hikes would help Moscow fund its war efforts.“We need to increase our bilateral support [for Ukraine], but also the pressure on Russia to stop this war and to really negotiate in good faith,” she said.Kallas claimed that with the US support, we “could have an end to this war,” but she specifically warned against Russia’s continuing territorial demands against Ukraine.“It is, of course, the Russian playbook of negotiations that they are demanding something that has never been theirs,” she said.She also stressed that the two conflicts were “very much interlinked” as “Russia is also supporting Iran with drones” and “with intelligence to target Americans, to kill Americans.”“So if America wants the war in the Middle East to stop [and] Iran to stop attacking them, they should also put the pressure on Russia, so that they are not able to help [Iran],” she said.Poland to cap fuel prices, cut taxes in bid to shield citizens from economic impact of Iran warPoland’s prime minister Donald Tusk has just announced plans to cap fuel prices and cut excise, VAT taxes to mitigate the economic effects of the war in the Middle East.Tusk said that Poland “did not start this war and will have no influence over its ending,” but wanted to shield citizens from its economic impact.The proposals include a daily cap on fuel prices, a reduction in VAT on fuel to 8% from 23%, and a cut to excise tax to the lowest possible level under EU laws.The package will also include a windfall tax against oil companies, Tusk said, without offering more details.He declined to say how long the emergency measures will be in force for, saying finance minister Andrzej Domański will outline the proposals in more detail later today.In an unusual step, the prime minister said the government would push to complete all steps of the legislative procedure in just one day tomorrow in a bid to put pressure on the opposition-aligned president, Karol Nawrocki, to sign them into law before the Easter break.As a result, Poland joins Spain in announcing a raft of emergency measures responding to the crisis amid growing concerns it could have significant cost-of-living consequences across Europe.Rutte also repeatedly gets asked about the recent Iranian attempt to strike the US-UK base on Diego Garcia, which he acknowledges as a “relevant development” showing Iran’s capabilities.He insists NATO is “prepared” and can defend itself, pointing to three interceptions of missiles heading for Turkey.And that ends his briefing.The full 2025 annual report is here, if you would like to read it too.Rutte gets once again asked about Trump’s criticism of NATO as “cowards.”And he once again responds by praising Trump (13:19).Back to Brussels, Rutte says that despite significant ramping up of defence spending, there are still areas that require improvements.NATO secretary general Mark Rutte looks on during a press conference to present his 2025 Annual Report at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. Photograph: Omar Havana/Reuters“The defence industrial base at the moment is simply not producing enough, and we are not fast enough in implementing innovation. We are getting better, but we have to do more,” he says.In other passage, he says that despite the world’s attention shifting to the Middle East, the essential equipment continues to flow to Ukraine, as does the supply of equipment purchased under the alliance’s Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List, or PURL.Hungary files espionage charges against top investigative journalist over claims about minister's phone calls with RussiaFlora Garamvolgyiin BudapestThe Hungarian government is filing charges against Hungary’s leading investigative journalist, Szabolcs Panyi, for alleged espionage amid the fallout from media reports claiming Hungary’s foreign minister regularly consulted with Russia.Orbán’s chief of staff, Gergely Gulyás, confirmed at Thursday’s press briefing that Hungary’s justice minister Bence Tuzson decided to file charges against Panyi.Gulyás said “the details already known to the public were sufficient enough” to press ahead, alleging Panyi had “spied against his own country in cooperation with a foreign state.”Hungarian foreign minister Peter Szijjártó meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in Moscow in November last year. Photograph: Alexander Nemenov/ReutersA Washington Post piece last week alleged that Hungary’s foreign minister, Péter Szijjártó, frequently updated his Russian counterpart on the phone with the details of confidential EU meetings.The Guardian has independently confirmed that Szijjártó shared confidential information with Lavrov.After the Post’s article, a pro-government online publication, Mandiner, published an article claiming that foreign intelligence agencies had wiretapped Szijjártó with the help of Panyi.The piece included an edited audio recording of Panyi talking to an unidentified woman, in which he spoke about sharing Szijjártó’s phone number with a source at an EU government agency.According to Gulyás, it is “not considered investigative journalism” when someone “gives a minister’s phone number to a foreign intelligence service,” alleging the journalist’s intent had been to have the minister’s phone wiretapped. “That’s espionage,” Gulyás added.After Gulyas’s statement, Panyi published a Facebook post denying the espionage allegations and saying the recording was heavily edited.Panyi is understood to be working on a book on the Russian interference in Hungarian politics. He was previously targeted with the Israeli spyware Pegasus on numerous occasions.Jakub KrupaBut there is a bit of an update from Hungary on that very issue.Let’s go over to Flora Garamvolgyi in Budapest.NATO’s Rutte also got asked about media reports alleging Hungary’s foreign minister Péter Szijjártó regularly exchanged information with third countries, including Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov.He sidesteps the issue saying that “all 32 allies agree that Russia is our most significant threat,” and not really addressing the original question.In the Q&A, Rutte also gets some questions on the situation in the Middle East.Among others, he gets asked about reports that Russia supplies Iran with combat drones.He says he cannot really comment on this as it would risk compromising intelligence sources, but added that he was not “naive” about it, adding “we have known this for some years that there is a close connection between Iran, Russia, North Korea and China.”In the Q&A, Rutte repeatedly gets asked about Trump, and his criticism of NATO allies as “cowards” and his repeated claims that the US would “remember” their refusal to help on Iran.As ever, he is very careful not to criticise the US president.He says instead: “What I have been seeing is some frustration … about the Europeans needing to take time to react to his requests … and I said, hey, there is a reason for that. … For good reasons, the US was not able to consult with allies because they wanted to keep the campaign, secret again, for good reasons, to make sure that, nobody knew what happened on that Saturday morning.” But he says that numerous Europeans are now willing to “come together to discuss” what they can do to help with keeping the strait of Hormuz open.Straight away, Rutte gets a question on the US and its relation with NATO – and he jumps right in to praise Trump.He insists in response that, without Trump, the alliance would not have been in the current position of reaching 2% at the end of 2025.“Without the present administration in the United States and the present president, I don’t think you would ever have reached this commitment to spend 5% of our GDP on defence, including the 3.5% on core defence [either],” he says.He also pointedly praises “Trump 47” as he refers to him (!?) for opening the dialogue with Russia and “breaking the deadlock,” even thought the negotiations do not appear to be progressing at the moment.'Russia remains most significant, dire threat,' Rutte saysRutte says that defence ramp up is needed so the alliance is in a position to “address the threats we face.”“Russia remains the most significant and dire threat to security in the Euro-Atlantic area,” he says, referencing numerous incidents from the last year, including airspace violations, sabotage, malign cyberactivities, and drone incursions.NATO chief says Europe increased defence spending by 20% in 2025Nato’s Rutte says that on the back of the 2025 summit in the Hague, allies “took a historic decision to raise defence investment to 5% GDP,” with “significant progress” over the course of the year.“For the first time, all allies met the goal agreed in 2014 to invest at least 2% of their GDP on defence,” he adds.He notes that “we saw 20% increase in what Europe and Canada spent on defence in 2025 as compared with 2024.”“Continuing this crucial trend will be a priority in the years to come,” he says.He continues: “For too long, European allies and Canada were overreliant on US military might. We did not take enough responsibility for our own security. But there has been a real shift in mindset, a collective recognition of our changed security environment. And as a European, I am proud of what we are doing.”