00:00For all intents and purposes, it was Donald Trump's NATO summit.
00:05Meetings and the final declaration were kept short and sweet, and the headline pledge was
00:10a major defense spending boost to keep the U.S. President on side.
00:14In a very historic milestone this week, the NATO allies committed to dramatically increase
00:19their defense spending to that 5% of GDP, something that no one really thought possible.
00:26And they said, you did it, sir, you did it. Well, I don't know if I did it, but I think I did.
00:31Spain has a notable exemption to the 5% target, after the Prime Minister said that the country
00:36was unable to meet it. But for many European leaders, in the face of the threat posed by
00:42Russia, increased defense spending has become a necessity.
00:47We must do this for ourselves to be more independent. And with this funding, Europe must also foster
00:52innovation and a defense industry, not just buy from others.
00:56Currently, Europe buys most of its military equipment from the United States.
01:02In return, the alliance's 32 leaders got some reassurance from Trump over NATO's collective
01:08security guarantee, after the American president cast doubt on it while en route to The Hague.
01:14The final declaration expresses the country's ironclad commitment to come to each other's aid
01:19if attacked.
01:20I came here because it was something I'm supposed to be doing. And I left here differently. I
01:25left here saying that these people really love their countries. It's not a rip off. And we're
01:31here to help them protect their country.
01:33In contrast to his prominence at other recent NATO meetings, Wladimir Zelenskyy was not in the room
01:39for most of the summit in another concession to Trump. But European allies were still keen
01:45to send a message of support.
01:46Our aim is to keep Ukraine in the fight today, so that it can enjoy a lasting peace in the future.
01:53And we'll continue to support Ukraine on its irreversible path to NATO membership.
01:58The Trump administration has been reluctant to support Ukraine against Russia and has vetoed
02:04Ukraine's bid to join NATO for the foreseeable future.
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