'We Weren't Treated Well': Trump Hits Out At NATO Again Over Iran War In Turkey
'We Weren't Treated Well': Trump Hits Out At NATO Again Over Iran War In Turkey Published By, Last Updated: July 07, 2026, 18:48 IST Trump
'We Weren't Treated Well': Trump Hits Out At NATO Again Over Iran War In Turkey Published By, Last Updated: July 07, 2026, 18:48 IST Trump made the remarks as he arrived in Turkey for the NATO Summit. He was welcomed by his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan. US President Donald Trump with Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan ahead of the NATO Summit in Ankara. (AFP) US President Donald Trump on Tuesday again voiced criticism of NATO over what he described as a failure to support the United States in its war against Iran, questioning why Washington was spending billions of dollars for them. “We weren’t treated well because we did something in Iran. Before we even asked, they said they weren’t going to be there," he said after arriving in Turkey for the NATO Summit. Trump was seated beside Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. “We’ve invested trillions of dollars in NATO. Why? To protect European countries and others. You would think that they’d be very willing to do something to help us, and they really weren’t.
I’ve long said that we help them, but I’m not sure that they’d be there for us," he also said..@POTUS: “We’ve invested trillions of dollars in NATO. Why? To protect European countries and others… You would think that they’d be very willing to do something to help us, and they really weren’t… I’ve long said that we help them, but I’m not sure that they’d be there for… pic.twitter.com/qkfqX1CQea— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) July 7, 2026 “Why are we spending hundreds of billions of dollars when they’re not there for us? We’ve always been there for them." Trump has repeatedly criticised NATO after his calls for European assistance to pressure Iran into reopening the Strait of Hormuz found few takers within the alliance. The US president has repeatedly asserted that Washington was let down by NATO allies over their failure to support the war. Trump’s remarks at the Western military alliance came as NATO leaders assemble in Ankara on Tuesday and Wednesday for a high-stakes summit that spans Ukraine, Iran, defence production, and regional security.
One of the most pressing issues is whether NATO members are moving fast enough to meet Trump’s demand for higher defence spending. Earlier, NATO unveiled a series of military projects worth billions of dollars, with Secretary-General Mark Rutte calling the investment “money well spent". Trump To Offer F-35s To Turkey Meanwhile, Trump announced that he will offer F-35 fighter jets to Turkey during his visit to Ankara, saying the two countries shared a “very good relationship". “It’s a decision we are going to make. We have a very good relationship. Many people would think why we wouldn’t do that. Turkey has been, in many ways, much more loyal than other countries that we think would be loyal — so, yeah, it’s something certainly we would consider," he said. The move is the biggest gesture from Trump, after Turkey’s 2019 acquisition of the Russian S-400 air defence system strained ties between Washington and Ankara. In response to Turkey’s purchase, the US in 2020 imposed sanctions on a major Turkish defence company and removed Turkey from the F-35 stealth fighter jet program, where Ankara was also a production partner.
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