Nato Statement Fails To Condemn Russia's War – While Trump Praises Putin's 'Kindness'

Front row left to right, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, President Donald Trump and Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer during a group photo of NATO heads of state and government at the NATO summit in The Hague, Netherlands, Wednesday, June 25, 2025.Nato’s joint statement from this year’s summit barely mentioned Russia or Ukraine this year, even though Vladimir Putin’s war continues to rage.Ever since the Russian president ordered the invasion of his European neighbour in February 2022, Nato allies have offered unwavering support to Ukraine and repeatedly condemned Putin’s aggression.But at this year’s meeting at The Hague – the first Nato summit since Donald Trump was re-elected – member states appear to have prioritised bending to the US president’s will.The watered down statement seemed to be part of a wider strategy to win over Trump, a prominent Nato sceptic, and prevent him from fulfilling his past threats of pulling out of the alliance altogether.The statement also focused on member states’ collective pledge to increase its defence spending target from its current 2% of gross domestic product (GDP) to 5% – although 1.5% of that sum could be spent on things like infrastructure.That hike in defence spending comes amid wider concerns that Putin may push further into Europe with his ongoing land grab in Ukraine.But the statement mainly credited Trump for the uptick in national security spending after he insisted that the continent stop relying on American military power.It’s likely allies tried to avoid mentioning Putin’s aggression in to appease Trump, who is closer to Putin than Joe Biden ever was.Meanwhile, Trump was able to go as far as to using his platform at Nato to praise Putin’s “kindness” after his Russian counterpart offered to mediate the Iran-Israel conflict.The US president told reporters at the summit: “I’ve talked a lot with Putin, and he’s been very kind. He himself offered help, as you know, on Iran. I said, ‘No, I don’t need help on Iran. I need help on Russia. Do me a favour. Help us with Russia, not with Iran.’”But he later said: “Maybe I’ll talk to Putin to stop the war.”Asked if he thinks Putin has territorial ambitions beyond Ukraine, he said: “Maybe. I mean, it’s possible. What I know is this: Putin would like to make a deal to end the war in Ukraine. He’d like to get out of it. It’s a mess for him.”He added: “No, I think Putin is someone who, in my view, just went off course. Honestly, I’m very surprised. I thought we would’ve settled this easily.”Trump initially promised to resolve the war in Ukraine within 24 hours of returning to the Oval Office.Five months later, his efforts to force Russia to the negotiating table have fallen flat as Putin continues to drag his heels, even after Trump offered a truce on terms favourable to Moscow.The US president did have a brief meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodmyr Zelensky at the Nato summit.The president later said: “I didn’t discuss a ceasefire in Ukraine with Zelensky. I just wanted to see how he was doing. We had tough times, but he was very kind. I was glad to see him. It was a wonderful meeting. I think this is a great time to end the war.”Despite the disappointing joint statement and Trump’s warmth towards Putin, individual member states did re-iterate their ongoing support for Ukraine.UK prime minister Keir Starmer has made it clear that Britain is still a prominent ally to Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression.He said: “This summit has sent a decisive message to aggressors and that must be matched by our commitment to Ukraine.“And that’s why I have announced this week that the UK is providing hundreds more air defence missiles to protect the Ukrainian people, paid for, not by the British taxpayer – but with money from frozen Russian assets.”Trump using the NATO Summit as platform to tell us of Putin's kindness, the day after he massacred 20 people and injured another 300 in Dnipro.“We’ll see. I’ve talked a lot with Putin, and he’s been very kind. He himself offered help, as you know, on Iran. I said, “No, I don’t… pic.twitter.com/g5PynNTMAd— Jay in Kyiv (@JayinKyiv) June 25, 2025Keir Starmer suggests Trump supports a new push to pressure Russia‘The mood of pretty well all participants… was one of recognising that we need to now push harder on Ukraine’Trump said in closed meeting something had to be done because situation is “totally out of control” pic.twitter.com/CxC1CXCSH2— Alex Wickham (@alexwickham) June 25, 2025Related...Nato Chief Calls Donald Trump 'Daddy' As He Justifies US President's F-Word OutburstTrump Sidesteps Key Question About His Commitment To Nato's Core Principle: 'It Depends'Nato Chief Tells Trump He Is Already A Winner Hours Before His Arrival At Summit

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