NATO in April 2026: the most important developments in politics
In April 2026 NATO politics were dominated by President Donald Trump's criticism of the alliance over the Iran war. On 1 April he said in an interview with The Telegraph that he was strongly considering pulling the United States out of NATO and called it a "paper tiger"; Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US would have to re-examine the relationship, and President Macron said Trump was undermining NATO by creating doubt about US commitment. Trump met Secretary General Mark Rutte in Washington on 8 April and afterwards complained that the alliance "wasn't there when we needed them". He reportedly gave allies an ultimatum on 10 April to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within days. On 13 April allies refused to join a US-led blockade of the strait, and Trump warned of a "very serious examination" of US policy within NATO. On 18 April Rutte dismissed talk of a US exit as unfounded.
A second dispute concerned Spain. On 24 April a Pentagon memo reportedly floated suspending Spain from NATO over its refusal to join military action against Iran. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez dismissed the email, NATO said no legal provision exists to expel or suspend a member, and Italy's Giorgia Meloni said tensions within the alliance were not acceptable. On 27 and 28 April reports said NATO was considering ending its annual summits.
European governments responded with contingency planning. Reports said Europe was accelerating plans for a NATO fallback in case the US withdraws, and the EU Defence Commissioner proposed a European army to reform the alliance. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer urged the US to stay and Europe to raise its contributions. The Financial Times reported on 17 April that Rutte and Ursula von der Leyen were excluded from the guest list of a Hormuz summit. In Slovenia, the parliament speaker proposed a referendum on leaving NATO, while Spain's parliament rejected a proposal for a referendum on membership. Russian officials commented on the rift; Medvedev said a NATO without the US would be worse for Russia, and the Kremlin warned on 23 April of a return to full confrontation.
by WorldBrief & Maksim Micheliov | AI-generated summary
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