These days, every official visit and every summit involving the President of the United States seems like a frantic scramble to keep the leader of the Atlantic alliance on board. But what if it’s already too late?
Last month, world leaders left France counting themselves lucky that Donald Trump hadn’t taken a big bazooka to the G7 summit.
In Ankara, the mood was darker: a Donald Trump threatening to pull all US troops out of Europe, cut trade with Spain, and blast Nato for its refusal to join his war against Iran. He claimed he wouldn’t even have attended were it not for his friend Recep Tayyip Erdoğan hosting the gathering.
Put the put-downs and popularity contests aside, and the stakes become much clearer. Real lives are at risk.
How can allies move faster to provide the defence systems Ukraine needs against Russia’s cruise missile attacks? And what happens if Vladimir Putin, with Russians increasingly feeling the strain of Ukrainian drone strikes on power and fuel infrastructure, decides to go for broke and test the resolve of Europe’s frontline states?
Produced by Rebecca Gnignati, Elisa Amiri, Ilayda Habip.
