US President Donald Trump indicated that Russian President Vladimir Putin may have ambitions to invade other countries following Ukraine and called the new NATO defense spending target a "big win" at the alliance’s summit in The Hague.
At a press conference during the NATO summit in The Hague on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump addressed questions about Russian President Vladimir Putin’s intentions in Europe. When asked if he considered Putin an enemy and whether he believed the Russian leader had territorial ambitions beyond Ukraine, Trump replied, "It's possible."
"I consider him a person who I think is misguided," Trump said.
Trump also told reporters that Putin had recently reached out to offer assistance in settling the Middle East conflict and to act as an intermediary between the US, Israel, and Iran. "He called the other day (and) said: 'Can I help you with Iran?' I said no, you can help me with Russia," Trump recounted.
The US president stated he is in regular contact with Putin, particularly regarding Ukraine. "I know one thing. He would like to settle. He would like to get out of this. It's a mess for him. I said: 'You help me get a settlement with you,' and I think we're going to be doing that soon," Trump said.
Trump, who had previously announced he would negotiate an end to the Russian invasion of Ukraine within 24 hours, clarified at the NATO summit that this was intended sarcastically. He added, "The negotiations are more difficult than anyone had thought," and "Putin is more difficult."
Trump also described a "good" meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the summit and said he would "see" if the US could supply Ukraine with Patriot air defense systems in the future.
At the two-day summit in The Hague, all 32 NATO allies agreed to increase defense spending to 5% of GDP within 10 years. Trump characterized this agreement as a "big win" for the US and the West.
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