Lithuania hopes for clarity on US troop presence ahead of NATO summit - LRT

On 7 July 2026, NATO leaders met for a summit in Ankara, hosted by Turkey. Trump arrived and renewed his call for the United States to take over Greenland, saying the Greenland issue harmed US-NATO ties. He also expressed disappointment with NATO over Iran. CNN reported that Trump had mused about cutting US troops in Europe by a third. Lithuania said it hopes for clarity on the US troop presence.

Allies pushed defense spending. Estonia called the gathering a 'summit of delivery', and NATO's Rutte said allies will cooperate on critical defense materials. Von der Leyen and Rutte said NATO must become more European. Zelensky said Kyiv could bring 'extraordinary' defense capabilities to NATO. Russia's Lavrov said NATO's militarization would end in defeat for it. Italy's Meloni arrived last and attended a tense dinner, and said relations with Trump are cordial.