Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte has backed US President Donald Trump's intervention in the war between Israel and Iran, and subsequent ceasefire efforts, as the alliance's leaders gathered in The Hague for a summit.
The summit's initial focus on increased defence spending was overshadowed by the Middle East conflict, as Mr Trump demanded Israel and Iran respect the ceasefire, criticising both for breaching the deadline before flying to the Netherlands.
“Congratulations and thank you on your decisive action in Iran. That was truly extraordinary and something no one else dared to do,” Mr Rutte wrote in a message to Mr Trump, which the US President published on social media. “It makes us all safer.”
The goal of the summit is to convince the alliance's 32 states to commit to spending five per cent of their GDP on defence, to satisfy Mr Trump's demands that Europeans spend more on their own protection.
Mr Rutte promised the US President that he was “flying into another big success” at the summit. “It wasn't easy but we've got them all signed on the 5 per cent,” he said. “Europe is going to pay in a big way, as they should, and it will be your win.”
Later, Mr Rutte told Mr Trump: "That is thanks to you pushing us."
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer also praised Mr Trump, saying the US had helped in “alleviating” the threat of Iran's nuclear capability after striking enrichment plants across the country at the weekend.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan echoed these sentiments, hailing the ceasefire and urging "close dialogue" to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
'Fragile' situation
This marked a noticeable difference with opinions expressed by Norway and France, which criticised the US bombing of Iran as illegal. The Iran-Israel ceasefire is far from a done deal, French President Emmanuel Macron warned.
“I think [Mr Trump] made some important and very positive statements,” Mr Macron said after a two-day state visit to Norway. He added that “the situation remains very fragile”.
Jane Kinninmont, chief executive of the UN Association of the UK and co-author of an independent expert report published last year on Nato's engagement with the Middle East, said that few leaders would dare express outright criticism of Mr Trump out of fear of retaliation.
“There is so much uncertainty that leaders are genuinely quite afraid to say anything negative about Mr Trump that could result in damage to their economic interests or their security interests, so they are playing it safe,” Ms Kinninmont told The National.
“For most Europeans, a Middle East war is an unwanted and unpopular distraction from what they want to focus their military spending on, which is defence preparations against Russia,” Ms Kinninmont said.
Nato's presence in the Middle East has historically been focused on military training and liaison, and the risks of being sucked into the Iran crisis are limited.
Article five
Some Europeans governments view Russia as an existential threat and fear Mr Trump might pull the rug on Ukraine military support. Speaking on board Air Force One, the US President appeared not to fully endorse Article 5, which enshrines the principle of collective defence. It states that an attack against one ally is considered an attack against all allies.
“It depends on your definition. There are numerous definitions of Article 5,” Mr Trump said.
The summit has been carefully choreographed to avoid trouble, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who clashed with Mr Trump in the Oval Office, deciding not to attend talks on Wednesday, although he will take part in a pre-summit dinner hosted by the Dutch King Willem-Alexander.
Speaking at a panel, Mr Rutte said that it was important that Nato be able to juggle several crises at once. “If we were not able to deal with the Middle East, which is very big in commanding all the headlines, and Ukraine at the same time, we should not be in the business of politics and military at all,” he said. “If you can only deal with one issue at a time, then let other people take over.”
Europe should not shift its focus away from the Ukraine war, warned UK Defence Secretary John Healey.
"Understandably, all eyes have been on the Middle East, and it's really important that we don't lose sight of Ukraine," Mr Healey said. "[Russian President Vladmir] Putin wants our focus to slip. And part of the strong message from Nato is that we will not let that happen."
Five per cent
Increasing defence expenses to 5 per cent of GDP will be a “quantum leap of historic proportions”, Mr Rutte said. When he stepped down as prime minister of the Netherlands in 2023, his country was spending only 1.7 per cent of GDP on defence. Today, nearly one third of Nato states have yet to reach a 2 per cent commitment made in 2014.
Now, allies have agreed to dedicate 3.5 per cent to core military needs by 2035, and 1.5 per cent to broader security-related areas such as cyber security and infrastructure.
"For the first time, every single ally will hit or exceed the 2 per cent mark — many surpassing 4 per cent — with a shared commitment to reach 5 per cent as soon as possible," US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a post on X.
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen described the shift as historic. “The security architecture that we relied on for decades can no longer be taken for granted. It is a once-in-a-generation tectonic shift,” Ms von der Leyen said.
No announcements are expected on the Middle East despite the Iran war making its way into discussions. To some in the region, Nato suffers from a negative perception associated with US military operations and the chaos that ensued after the 2011 Libya intervention, as well as incidents such as the botched evacuation of Kabul in 2021.
But today, the Nato mission in Iraq, which focuses on building up the capacity of the nation's security forces, is widely viewed as a success, while the alliance on June 12 signed an agreement for the establishment of a diplomatic Nato Liaison Office in Amman.
At its 2023 summit in Vilnius, Nato highlighted that security challenges in the Middle East posed a security threat and launched a comprehensive review of its engagement in the region.
Yet most ideas later put forward by experts have been swept under the carpet since Mr Trump's re-election to the White House in January – and understandably so, said Kristina Kausch, deputy managing director and senior fellow at the German Marshal Fund's southern division.
“As much as stronger engagement in the [Global] South may be professed at the rhetorical level, Nato is de facto very much, and for good reason, focused on its primary task of collective defence in Ukraine and Nato’s Eastern flank,” Ms Kausch said.
RESULTS
Bantamweight title:
Vinicius de Oliveira (BRA) bt Xavier Alaoui (MAR)
(KO round 2)
Catchweight 68kg:
Sean Soriano (USA) bt Noad Lahat (ISR)
(TKO round 1)
Middleweight:
Denis Tiuliulin (RUS) bt Juscelino Ferreira (BRA)
(TKO round 1)
Lightweight:
Anas Siraj Mounir (MAR) bt Joachim Tollefsen (DEN)
(Unanimous decision)
Catchweight 68kg:
Austin Arnett (USA) bt Daniel Vega (MEX)
(TKO round 3)
Lightweight:
Carrington Banks (USA) bt Marcio Andrade (BRA)
(Unanimous decision)
Catchweight 58kg:
Corinne Laframboise (CAN) bt Malin Hermansson (SWE)
(Submission round 2)
Bantamweight:
Jalal Al Daaja (CAN) bt Juares Dea (CMR)
(Split decision)
Middleweight:
Mohamad Osseili (LEB) bt Ivan Slynko (UKR)
(TKO round 1)
Featherweight:
Tarun Grigoryan (ARM) bt Islam Makhamadjanov (UZB)
(Unanimous decision)
Catchweight 54kg:
Mariagiovanna Vai (ITA) bt Daniella Shutov (ISR)
(Submission round 1)
Middleweight:
Joan Arastey (ESP) bt Omran Chaaban (LEB)
(Unanimous decision)
Welterweight:
Bruno Carvalho (POR) bt Souhil Tahiri (ALG)
(TKO)
Specs
Engine: 3.0L twin-turbo V6
Gearbox: 10-speed automatic
Power: 405hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 562Nm at 3,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 11.2L/100km
Price: From Dh292,845 (Reserve); from Dh320,145 (Presidential)
On sale: Now
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
MATCH INFO
FA Cup final
Chelsea 1
Hazard (22' pen)
Manchester United 0
Man of the match: Eden Hazard (Chelsea)
Bareilly Ki Barfi
Directed by: Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
Starring: Kriti Sanon, Ayushmann Khurrana, Rajkummar Rao
Three and a half stars
Shubh Mangal Saavdhan
Directed by: RS Prasanna
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Bhumi Pednekar
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THE BIO:
Sabri Razouk, 74
Athlete and fitness trainer
Married, father of six
Favourite exercise: Bench press
Must-eat weekly meal: Steak with beans, carrots, broccoli, crust and corn
Power drink: A glass of yoghurt
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A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
Results
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Profile of Bitex UAE
Date of launch: November 2018
Founder: Monark Modi
Based: Business Bay, Dubai
Sector: Financial services
Size: Eight employees
Investors: Self-funded to date with $1m of personal savings
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Directed by Sam Mendes
Starring Dean-Charles Chapman, George MacKay, Daniel Mays
4.5/5
Notable salonnières of the Middle East through history
Al Khasan (Okaz, Saudi Arabia)
Tamadir bint Amr Al Harith, known simply as Al Khasan, was a poet from Najd famed for elegies, earning great renown for the eulogy of her brothers Mu’awiyah and Sakhr, both killed in tribal wars. Although not a salonnière, this prestigious 7th century poet fostered a culture of literary criticism and could be found standing in the souq of Okaz and reciting her poetry, publicly pronouncing her views and inviting others to join in the debate on scholarship. She later converted to Islam.
Maryana Marrash (Aleppo)
A poet and writer, Marrash helped revive the tradition of the salon and was an active part of the Nadha movement, or Arab Renaissance. Born to an established family in Aleppo in Ottoman Syria in 1848, Marrash was educated at missionary schools in Aleppo and Beirut at a time when many women did not receive an education. After touring Europe, she began to host salons where writers played chess and cards, competed in the art of poetry, and discussed literature and politics. An accomplished singer and canon player, music and dancing were a part of these evenings.
Princess Nazil Fadil (Cairo)
Princess Nazil Fadil gathered religious, literary and political elite together at her Cairo palace, although she stopped short of inviting women. The princess, a niece of Khedive Ismail, believed that Egypt’s situation could only be solved through education and she donated her own property to help fund the first modern Egyptian University in Cairo.
Mayy Ziyadah (Cairo)
Ziyadah was the first to entertain both men and women at her Cairo salon, founded in 1913. The writer, poet, public speaker and critic, her writing explored language, religious identity, language, nationalism and hierarchy. Born in Nazareth, Palestine, to a Lebanese father and Palestinian mother, her salon was open to different social classes and earned comparisons with souq of where Al Khansa herself once recited.
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
At Eternity’s Gate
Director: Julian Schnabel
Starring: Willem Dafoe, Oscar Isaacs, Mads Mikkelsen
Three stars
UAE%20ILT20
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AGUERO'S PREMIER LEAGUE RECORD
Apps: 186
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Key products and UAE prices
iPhone XS
With a 5.8-inch screen, it will be an advance version of the iPhone X. It will be dual sim and comes with better battery life, a faster processor and better camera. A new gold colour will be available.
Price: Dh4,229
iPhone XS Max
It is expected to be a grander version of the iPhone X with a 6.5-inch screen; an inch bigger than the screen of the iPhone 8 Plus.
Price: Dh4,649
iPhone XR
A low-cost version of the iPhone X with a 6.1-inch screen, it is expected to attract mass attention. According to industry experts, it is likely to have aluminium edges instead of stainless steel.
Price: Dh3,179
Apple Watch Series 4
More comprehensive health device with edge-to-edge displays that are more than 30 per cent bigger than displays on current models.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
