“‘I’m leaving,’ Trump said. ‘There’s no reason to be here any more’”: inside the meeting that brought Nato to the brink

<p>Former secretary general Jens Stoltenberg recalls the rollercoaster ride of dealing with Donald Trump – and how close the US president brought the alliance to the point of collapse</p><p>No other nation means more for what Nato is than the United States. It holds a unique position among member states due to its political, economic and military weight. Which is why the forces that dominate American politics – and who is in the White House – are such decisive factors. The <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/us-elections-2016">presidential election in November 2016</a> was therefore not only important to the US, but also to all of Nato.</p><p>For the first six months of 2016, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/oct/27/hillary-clinton-will-win-what-kind-of-president-white-house-obama">Hillary Clinton was ahead in every poll</a>. By autumn, election experts were predicting her victory. I, too, had a gut feeling this would be the outcome. On election night, my wife Ingrid and I arranged a party with friends and colleagues at the residence in Brussels. We rigged up a large television in the living room, and hamburgers were served. A long day lay ahead, so I turned in before midnight.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/oct/04/im-leaving-trump-said-theres-no-reason-to-be-here-any-more-inside-the-meeting-that-brought-nato-to-the-brink">Continue reading...</a>