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What To Expect From The NATO Summit

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg speaks during a media conference at NATO headquarters on the eve of a summit of the NATO heads of state and governments in Brussels on Tuesday, July 10, 2018. NATO leaders to discuss Russia, Iraq and their mission in Afghanistan.(AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg speaks during a media conference at NATO headquarters on the eve of a summit of the NATO heads of state and governments in Brussels on Tuesday, July 10, 2018. NATO leaders to discuss Russia, Iraq and their mission in Afghanistan.(AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

With Linda Wertheimer

Uneasy allies on the edge await President Trump at the NATO summit in Brussels. We’ll look at the high stakes.

Guests

David Herszenhorn, chief Brussels correspondent for POLITICO. (@herszenhorn)

Eli Lake, Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering national security and foreign policy (@EliLake)

Nicholas Burns, professor of diplomacy and international relations at Harvard’s Kennedy School and 27-year State Department veteran serving as ambassador to NATO and Greece. (@RNicholasBurns)

From The Reading List

Politico Europe: Trump Rips Into Germany At NATO Chief Breakfast — ““I think it’s very sad when Germany makes a massive oil and gas deal with Russia, where you’re supposed to be guarding against Russia and Germany goes out and pays billions and billions of dollars a year to Russia,” Trump said in his opening remarks at the breakfast, which were broadcast live on television.”

The Wall Street Journal:  Summit Looms for a Strained NATO Alliance — “Since the post-World-War-II era the alliance has entwined security, through NATO, and the economy, through trade pacts. Mr. Trump has invoked a Cold War-era U.S. law to brand some imports from Europe as a threat to American security, the first time the law has been invoked against U.S. allies. Using that justification, he has placed tariffs on European steel and aluminum and threatened more against cars. The moves sparked European retaliation against U.S. industries. The president also says the security umbrella the U.S. spread across Europe during the Cold War allows allies to benefit without paying their full share as set by NATO goals.”

Bloomberg: NATO’s Real Crisis Is Turkey, Not Trump — “Ideally, this week’s NATO summit would be an opportunity for the U.S. president to cajole European allies into presenting a unified opposition to Erdogan’s conduct. There is no mechanism for kicking a member out of the alliance, but Turkey should at least begin to feel some pain and pressure for its drift toward Russia.”

For 70 years, the NATO alliance has helped maintain peace and stability across the globe. But now, the US president is challenging NATO non-stop. President Trump is in Brussels with NATO leaders and he’s coming out of the gates swinging. Behind the smiling faces at the official portrait America’s allies are on edge. The future of the revered alliance is uncertain. This hour, On Point: The NATO Summit in Brussels and looking ahead to Trump and Putin. –Linda Wertheimer.

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