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Bloomberg: NATO may cancel summit in Albania next year

Politiko 2026-07-08 12:01:43

Bloomberg: NATO may cancel summit in Albania next year

"NATO is considering scrapping its annual summit next year, in part to ease tensions with US President Donald Trump, who frequently criticizes the alliance, and to deflect attention from the fact that the host country, Albania, is one of the members that spends the least on defense," reports the well-known Bloomberg agency.

According to people familiar with the discussions, this week, as NATO leaders gathered in Ankara, the debate intensified to move away from the practice of holding the summit every year.

Trump stated that he had come to the Turkish capital only because of his close relationship with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and used his presence to once again disparage the military alliance and question its importance.

The president's continued attacks on NATO have raised the possibility that next year's summit, scheduled to be held in Albania, will be postponed, so as not to create another scene where Trump publicly criticizes allies, said the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the confidential nature of the discussions.

Albania has also been one of the countries that has spent the least on defense within NATO, failing until recently to meet the long-standing commitment to spend at least 2% of Gross Domestic Product on defense.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte wants to maintain the organization of summits every year to keep the alliance at the center of the international agenda and has tried to impress Trump by highlighting the huge increase in military spending by allied countries.

However, it is not clear whether this strategy is working. Notably, the final statement of the Ankara summit, which leaders will adopt on Wednesday, will not contain any reference to the upcoming summit, according to a person familiar with the text.

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