Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., acknowledged that President Donald Trump has "wisely" pushed NATO allies to spend more on defense, calling the demand "not an unreasonable ask" during the alliance's summit in Turkey. Durbin, who is part of a bipartisan congressional delegation attending the 2026 NATO Summit in Ankara, described the president's approach to the alliance as a "back-and-forth, love-and-hate relationship."
Trump has been a vocal critic of NATO's defense spending, particularly by European allies, arguing that the United States shoulders a disproportionate burden. Before arriving in Turkey, he posted on social media that the U.S. spends significantly more on NATO than other member nations, citing figures that showed U.S. defense spending at $999 billion compared to the United Kingdom's $90.5 billion, France's $66.5 billion, Italy's $48.8 billion, and Poland's $44.3 billion between 2014 and 2025. NATO data indicated estimated U.S. defense spending at $980 billion for 2025, with other countries' figures remaining largely consistent with Trump's claims. Trump stated that it is "ridiculous for the U.S.A. to continue along this one sided path when the relationship is not reciprocal. They were not there for us!!!"
The president's remarks came as NATO leaders agreed to a new benchmark urging allies to invest 5% of their gross domestic product in defense and related expenditures. Durbin, serving as the minority whip and ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, emphasized his belief in the NATO alliance, stating, "I believe in it; that’s why I’m here. And I’ve found that of the delegates that are here from all over the region, part of NATO, that they believe, as I do, that we’re a safer world with the NATO alliance. We have been since 1945."
However, Durbin also noted that "there have been things that happened during his second presidency which raised the question of our commitment to the future of NATO." He expressed that the summit offered an opportunity for the congressional delegation to "convince the president, if we have to, to move forward with this relationship."
The summit in Ankara focused on key discussions including the F-35 fighter jet program, Turkey's acquisition of Russian S-400 defense systems, and increasing defense spending among NATO members. President Trump was accompanied at the summit by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and National Security Adviser Michael Waltz.