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Births in Türkiye fell again in 2025, continuing a decline that has put NATO's youngest population on a course President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has called a "demographic disaster." For decades, the country of 85 million and rising military power had the bloc’s highest total fertility rate (TFR). In 2016, it stood at 2.1 births per woman, the level needed to sustain a population naturally. By the end of last year, the Turkish Statistical Institute reported it had fallen to 1.48, driven by prolonged economic downturn, rising cost of living and changing social norms among young people. It’s a familiar pattern...

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is not expected to attend a NATO defence ministers' meeting in Brussels next month, two sources said, the second time in a row that a top Trump administration official skips a gathering of the military alliance. U.S. President Donald Trump has had a tense relationship with NATO and many of its other members, most recently over his desire to acquire Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory of fellow alliance member Denmark. The sources, a U.S. official and a NATO diplomat, both said Hegseth would miss the Feb 12 gathering at NATO headquarters. U.S. Secretary of State Marco...

At a Spanish port 50 miles northwest of Gibraltar, four Turkish Navy ships, including a brand-new amphibious assault ship that doubles as an aircraft carrier, were set to arrive Friday to take part in NATO military exercises. Heavy winds had delayed the Turkish vessels, but once they dock at the Spanish Navy port, they will form a fleet with Spanish ships, sail around the continent and rendezvous with French, German, Polish and Dutch vessels. They will then travel to Germany’s Baltic Sea coast, bringing tanks, landing craft, helicopters, drones and troops from southern Europe to northern Germany. About 10,000 troops...

"Donald Trump is very important to NATO and very committed to NATO", Secretary General Mark Rutte said in remarks at the European Parliament on Monday as many MEPs worry about the president of the United States' aggressive rhetoric against Europe. Whereas Trump's threats to control Greenland have been defined as "the end of NATO" by Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Rutte said he believes that US President "deserves to be defended" and "is doing a lot of good stuff" for the NATO alliance. "The 2% [of the GDP spending target on defence] reached by all NATO countries at the end...

Rod Stewart called on President Donald Trump to apologize for his disparaging remarks about NATO troops, exhorting British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Leader of Reform UK Nigel Farage to also put pressure on the "draft dodger." Stewart addressed his ex-friend in a recent Instagram video, which you can see below. What Did Rod Stewart Say to Trump? "Hi there. I may just be a humble rock star. I'm also a knight of the realm, and I have my opinions," Stewart said. "I was born just after the war [World War II], and I have great respect for our armed...

Summary UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer says Donald Trump's remarks about British troops in Afghanistan are "insulting and frankly appalling" "If I had misspoken in that way - or said those words - I would certainly apologise," he says. The US president's comments have sparked outrage among UK veterans and politicians. The UK was among several allies to join the US in Afghanistan from 2001, after it invoked Nato's collective security clause following the 9/11 terror attacks - 457 British service personnel were killed in the conflict Corporal Andy Reid, who served in Afghanistan, tells the BBC Trump's claim is...

Canada's Arctic is a massive, treacherous, and largely inhospitable place, stretched out over nearly 4 million square kilometres of territory - but with a small population roughly equal to Blackburn in England or Syracuse, New York."You can take a map of continental Europe, put it on the Canadian Arctic, and there's room to spare," Pierre Leblanc, the former commander of the Canadian Forces Northern Area told the BBC. "And that environment is extremely dangerous."Standing at the defence of that massive landmass is an aging string of early warning radars, eight staffed military bases and about 100 full-time Coast Guard personnel...

Donald Trump has sparked fresh outrage in the UK after saying Nato troops stayed "a little off the front lines" during the war in Afghanistan. Labour MP Emily Thornberry, the chair of the foreign affairs committee, called it an "absolute insult" to the 457 British service personnel killed in the conflict, while Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said: "How dare he question their sacrifice?" Conservative MP Ben Obese-Jecty, who served in Afghanistan, said it was "sad to see our nation's sacrifice, and that of our Nato partners, held so cheaply". The UK was among several allies to join the...

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said on Jan. 21 that the issue of Greenland remaining part of Denmark did not come up during his meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump.Rutte, in an interview with Fox News, was asked about Greenland’s sovereignty under a proposed framework Trump mentioned earlier in the day at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.“That issue did not come up anymore in my conversations,” Rutte said. “[Trump] is very much focused on what do we need to do to make sure that that huge Arctic region—where change is taking place at the moment, where the Chinese and...

U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday spoke for more than an hour at the 2026 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. While his meandering remarks touched on multiple familiar topics, including windmills—a longtime personal pet peeve—the state of the U.S. economy, and his long-running 2020 U.S. presidential election denialism, Trump spoke at length about his desire to acquire Greenland from Denmark. He also strongly criticized NATO and said other members of the Western military alliance have taken advantage of U.S. generosity over the years. The following is an excerpt from his remarks focusing on Greenland, Denmark, NATO, and U.S. military...

Donald Trump represents everything that the Davos crowd hates – and it is unlikely they are any more well-disposed towards him after being forced to listen to more than an hour of the president’s rambling speech today. He is a protectionist, not a free trader. He thinks the climate crisis is a hoax and is suspicious of multilateral organisations. He prefers power plays to dialogue and he doesn’t have any time for the “woke” capitalism that Davos has been keen to promote, with its focus on gender equality and ethical investment. The shindig’s organisers, the World Economic Forum (WEF), had...

The headline from Trump’s Davos speech is clear: I won’t use military force to take Greenland. That’s what the President told the world’s leading politicians and business executives at the World Economic Forum. That declaration was very good news for all of them and for US investors, who immediately started buying stocks, erasing about half the losses suffered Tuesday, when the threat of force seemed possible. They all knew that carrying out that military threat would shatter the institutional foundation of Western security: NATO and US-European relations. Instead of military threats, Trump emphasized America’s disproportionate contributions to European defense since...

As much of Europe pushes back against President Donald Trump’s bid to acquire Greenland, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte is taking a markedly different stance, telling Europe that it should “be happy” Trump is in charge. Speaking Wednesday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Rutte credited Trump with forcing major European powers — including France, Italy, and Spain — to finally step up their defense commitments. Without Trump’s pressure, Rutte said, these countries would never have agreed to spend 2% of their gross domestic product on defense. “I’m not popular with you now because I’m defending Donald Trump, but...

The United States plans to reduce the number of personnel it has stationed within several key NATO command centers, a move that could intensify concerns in Europe about Washington's commitment to the alliance, three sources familiar with the matter said this week. As ​part of the move, which the Trump administration has communicated to some European capitals, the U.S. will eliminate roughly 200 positions from the NATO entities that oversee and ‌plan the alliance's military and intelligence operations, said the sources, who requested anonymity to discuss private diplomatic conversations. Among the bodies that will be affected, said the sources, are...

Donald Trump’s proposed takeover of Greenland is causing rifts inside Nato that have resulted in officials withholding intelligence sharing with the US. Sources from both sides of the Atlantic warn that the US-UK security relationship is at its lowest ebb since the 1950s, putting European security at risk. For more than 70 years, the special relationship between Britain and America has been a cornerstone of the Western alliance, with intelligence and military officials working together to combat all manner of threats, from direct war to clandestine operations. But Trump’s ambitions to acquire Greenland for national security reasons is destroying trust...

n 1969, Charles de Gaulle told his friend André Malraux that America’s “desire – and one day it will satisfy it – is to desert Europe. You will see.” It has taken nearly six decades, but de Gaulle’s prophecy now looks uncomfortably close to fulfillment. After years of diplomatic effort to manage, placate and charm successive American presidents – and Donald Trump in particular – European leaders are coming to a grim realization: the United States is, at best, indifferent to their interests and sensibilities and, at worst, openly hostile to them. Some, such as Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, still believe...

Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump Shockingly, our “brilliant” NATO Ally, the United Kingdom, is currently planning to give away the Island of Diego Garcia, the site of a vital U.S. Military Base, to Mauritius, and to do so FOR NO REASON WHATSOEVER. There is no doubt that China and Russia have noticed this act of total weakness. These are International Powers who only recognize STRENGTH, which is why the United States of America, under my leadership, is now, after only one year, respected like never before. The UK giving away extremely important land is an act of GREAT STUPIDITY, and is...

European leaders are increasingly discussing the creation of an alternative security framework outside NATO, amid growing doubts about the reliability of the United States as a long-term ally following threats by US President Donald Trump to annex Greenland, Politico reported on January 19. According to European officials cited by the outlet, Trump’s remarks about Greenland—a sovereign Danish territory—marked a turning point, convincing many capitals that Washington may no longer be a dependable security guarantor. Behind closed doors, officials described the idea of annexation as reckless and warned that it crossed a clear red line for Europe’s allies. The debate has...

The treasury secretary's comments come a day after President Donald Trump unveiled new tariffs against eight European nations who oppose Washington’s efforts to acquire Greenland.The Trump administration is intensifying its push to acquire Greenland, citing national security concerns as China and Russia expand their presence in the Arctic.Speaking Sunday on NBC News' "Meet the Press," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent argued that the U.S. must move to acquire Greenland — which is part of the Kingdom of Denmark — because Europe is too weak to protect it from potential threats.IN CASE YOU MISSED IT | 'Fundamental disagreement': Danish official cites ongoing...

Keir Starmer joined European allies warning of a 'dangerous downward spiral' in Nato today after Donald Trump threatened a trade war over Greenland. A joint statement from Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the UK said they stood 'firmly behind' the 'principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity'. The president has shocked the military alliance by warning that opponents of an American takeover of the Danish territory will be hit with punitive tariffs from February 1. In a bombshell post on his social media site, Mr Trump said levies will start at 10 per cent - and potentially...