NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said Wednesday that consultations with alliance leaders in Ankara demonstrated "a huge sense of unity," despite renewed pressure on cohesion from U.S. President Donald Trump's criticism of NATO.
This year's summit came as fighting flared up again between the U.S. and Iran, a conflict that has deepened the long-running rift between Trump and NATO allies, as he complained that they had let him down for refusing to get involved.
Trump reiterated that sentiment several times during the summit, while also doubling down on his bid to acquire Greenland from fellow NATO member Denmark and repeating his view that other allies weren't spending enough on defense.
But NATO chief Rutte insisted that consultations had been characterized by a degree of unity not seen "in recent history."
"We all felt that this alliance is more together than ever. I think particularly because we allow ourselves to sometimes disagree and then come together," Rutte said.
"Allies continue to increase both core defence spending and broader investments that strengthen our security," he said, highlighting that billions of dollars worth of procurement deals had been struck with industry during the summit.
Rutte stressed that European allies and Canada were "taking on greater responsibility" for the defense of NATO, as long demanded by Trump.
He also announced that allies were taking a "historic step to enhance NATO's fuel supply chain," with 27 billion euros ($30.8 billion) to be invested to modernize fuel storage and distribution infrastructure and "to support new facilities, including pipelines towards the eastern part of the alliance."
