WASHINGTON – NATO leaders are debating an end to their tradition of annual summits, according to six sources who spoke to Reuters, in a shift aimed at dodging a fraught meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump during his last year in office.
Trump’s team has unleashed sharp rebukes against most of the U.S.-led alliance’s 31 other members, including fresh attacks over their reluctance to ramp up aid for American military actions against Iran. While NATO’s summit rhythm has fluctuated across its 77-year span, heads of state have convened every summer since 2021, with the next one slated for Ankara, Turkey, on July 7-8.
A senior European official and five diplomats from member nations revealed to Reuters that several allies now favor dialing back the pace. One diplomat noted the 2027 summit in Albania would probably shift to autumn, while NATO mulls skipping 2028 entirely, the year of the U.S. presidential vote and Trump’s final full term. Another suggested moving to biennial gatherings, though no firm call has been made, leaving the decision to Secretary General Mark Rutte.
The sources requested anonymity amid sensitive internal talks. A NATO spokesperson countered Reuters’ questions by affirming: “NATO will continue to hold regular meetings of Heads of State and Government, and between summits NATO Allies will continue to consult, plan and take decisions about our shared security.”
Trump loomed large for two sources, though others pointed to wider issues. Diplomats and experts have criticized yearly summits for forcing flashy outcomes that undermine sustained strategy. “Better to have fewer summits than bad summits,” one diplomat remarked. “We have our work cut out for us anyway, we know what we have to do.” A second emphasized that discussion quality, not frequency, gauges alliance vitality.
Atlantic Council nonresident senior fellow Phyllis Berry argued in a recent think tank piece that curbing high-stakes gatherings would let NATO focus on core work and ease the theatrics plaguing recent transatlantic talks. She recalled just eight Cold War-era summits and labeled Trump’s initial three as “contentious events, dominated by his complaints about low allied defense spending.”
The prior year’s Hague summit revolved around Trump’s push for a 5% GDP defense hike, which allies met by pledging 3.5% on core military needs and 1.5% on wider security. Its drama-free close counted as a win. This summer’s event promises friction too: After allies balked at backing Trump’s unconsulted Iran campaign, he cast doubt on U.S. commitment to NATO’s defense pledge and floated an exit. Earlier, he eyed seizing Greenland from Denmark, another member.
During the 2018 summit, Trump vowed to storm out over skimpy ally spending. Former Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg later wrote in his memoir: “Had he made good on his threat to leave in protest, we would have been left to pick up the pieces of a shattered NATO.”