NATO Leaders Unveil $72 Billion in Arms Deals Amid US Pressure

NATO leaders have unveiled tens of billions of dollars worth of arms deals in a sign they are heeding calls from the United States to spend more to defend Europe.

Leaders convening for the summit in Türkiye are hoping to project unity after the war in Iran exposed cracks in the alliance that has underpinned Western security since the end of World War II.

The deals, worth about $72 billion according to one NATO official, included European countries buying surveillance drones from US company Northrop Grumman, and NATO buying planes from Sweden's Saab.

As part of the deals struck, US President Donald Trump also agreed to lift sanctions on Türkiye that were imposed in 2020 over Ankara's purchase of Russian air defence missiles.

He also expressed a willingness to sell Türkiye F-35 fighter jets.

But Mr Trump did not rule out further troop withdrawals from Europe during his meeting with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan.

"Well, we're going to see. I was very disappointed with NATO," he said, singling out Britain, France, Germany and Italy for not doing enough to support the US war with Iran.

Mr Trump said the US "weren't treated well" by the allies, even as he reiterated that he did not want or need their help.

Tensions between Mr Trump and NATO leaders also flared up at the summit, in part due to the US president's volatile relationship with some, including a recent feud with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and his repeated intention to take Greenland from fellow NATO member Denmark.

The president said his relationship with Ms Meloni "became a little bad because she refused to help us" with Iran.

"She refused to get involved, so it soured my relationship with her a little bit. But I like her. I think she's a nice person, actually. But I think she made a mistake," Mr Trump told reporters.

Meanwhile, Mr Trump used his press conference with the Turkish president to reiterate Greenland "should be controlled by the United States, not by Denmark".

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said she expected allies to respect the sovereignty of the Danish kingdom and accept that Greenland was not for sale.

NATO chief calls for defence 'revolution'

NATO secretary-general Mark Rutte said before the summit got underway that Europeans had made "staggering" increases in defence spending.

Mr Rutte called for a defence industry "revolution" across the alliance, warning over Russia's massive military spending as well as China, North Korea and Iran.

"We don't have the luxury of time. We need capabilities now to ensure we remain ready," Mr Rutte said.

"The security situation demands it.

Europe's defence sector has often been criticised as fragmented and saddled with red tape and rivalries between companies and countries.

Weak economic growth and the need to maintain generous state welfare provisions have also made defence spending a tougher sell in Europe.

Officials fear Trump could revive threats to quit NATO

Tensions within NATO, which were already strained over Ukraine, have deepened since the US attacked Iran in February.

Mr Trump has repeatedly criticised NATO members for insufficient support in the conflict, threatening to quit the alliance.

European officials insist they largely honoured requests and commitments to let the US use their airspace and bases during the conflict, despite not having been consulted about the war.

European officials had said they were braced for a repeat of some of Mr Trump's recent criticism at this week's summit.

The summit ends on Wednesday.