White House rebukes NATO over Iran as Trump meets alliance chief

WASHINGTON/BRUSSELS – US President Donald Trump vented his frustration with NATO during a private meeting with its secretary-general Mark Rutte on April 8 as relations in the military alliance reached a crisis point over the Iran war.

“He is clearly disappointed with many NATO allies, and I can see his point,” Mr Rutte said on CNN’s The Lead With Jake Tapper, after spending more than two hours at the White House. “This was a very frank, very open discussion, but also a discussion between two good friends.”

Mr Rutte spoke hours after White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt quoted Trump as saying of NATO: “They were tested, and they failed”, during the Iran war.

Several NATO countries resisted supporting the US military campaign against Iran by denying US military planes use of their airspace or declining to send naval forces to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz for energy tankers.

Without specifying the countries, Mr Rutte said his own view was that “some” NATO countries had failed to live up to their commitments in the Iran operation but that “the large majority of Europeans” had been helpful.

The White House did not disclose details of the talks. Mr Trump posted on Truth Social after the meeting in capitalised letters that “NATO wasn’t there when we needed them, and they won’t be there if we need them again.”

Mr Trump has threatened to withdraw from the 32-member transatlantic alliance in recent weeks, arguing that Washington’s European allies have relied on US security guarantees while providing inadequate support for the US-Israeli bombing campaign in Iran.

Although Mr Trump said on April 7 the attacks on Iran would be paused under a two-week ceasefire, the fallout from the conflict has continued to strain ties between Washington and its allies, suggesting the diplomatic consequences may linger longer.

“It’s quite sad that NATO turned their backs on the American people over the course of the last six weeks when it’s the American people who have been funding their defence,” Ms Leavitt told a press briefing.

Ms Leavitt said Mr Trump would have a “very frank and candid conversation” with the NATO chief, who arrived at the White House in the afternoon.

Mr Trump has called for countries that depend on oil from the Gulf region to break Iran’s chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, but European countries are unlikely to join mine-clearing or other missions to free up navigation as long as hostilities continue, according to two European diplomats.

Iran had vowed to obstruct the strait until the war ends.

A ‘dangerous point’ for the alliance

Mr Rutte, known in Europe as a “Trump whisperer”, has cultivated a warm relationship with Mr Trump despite the tensions and referred to him in 2025 as a “daddy” handling a schoolyard brawl between Israel and Iran. Another European diplomat described Mr Rutte’s approach to Mr Trump as deferential but effective.

Conflict over Iran has worsened transatlantic anxieties over Ukraine, Greenland and military spending, although senior US officials have privately reassured European governments that the administration remains committed to NATO, according to one of the two European officials, who was involved in such conversations.

“This is a dangerous point for the transatlantic alliance,” said Ms Oana Lungescu, a former NATO spokesperson now at the Royal United Services Institute, a London-based think tank.

A NATO official said Mr Rutte would seek to increase defence-industry cooperation and to discuss the wars in Iran and Ukraine.

“I expect he will keep up the dialogue on Ukraine and burden-shifting within NATO,” another senior European diplomat said, adding that the former Dutch politician has said alliance members “should lean into opening Hormuz” after a ceasefire.

Mr Trump also spoke with Mr Emmanuel Macron on April 8, the French president said in a post on X.

Trump calls NATO a ‘paper tiger’

NATO, which includes European countries, the US and Canada, was formed in 1949 to counter the risk of Soviet attack and has been the cornerstone of the West’s security ever since.

In recent weeks, Mr Trump has repeatedly called NATO a “paper tiger” that is unhelpful in times of need. Asked by a Reuters reporter earlier this month about withdrawing from NATO, Mr Trump said: “Wouldn’t you if you were me?”

His focus on the Middle East has also further threatened to divert US weapons from Ukraine, whose defence is a major priority for most of NATO’s European members. Mr Trump’s criticism of Ukraine, engagement with Russia and threats to take over Greenland from NATO member Denmark have alarmed those allies.

“He has been disappointed by NATO and other allies’ unwillingness to be helpful throughout Operation Epic Fury, even though his effort to destroy the threat posed by Iran is to their benefit,” said White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly.

“As he said, the United States will remember.” REUTERS