标签： Europe

In an unanticipated shift that has sparked new debate over presidential travel security, former President Donald Trump departed a NATO summit in Turkey on a decades-old legacy Air Force One jet instead of the newly retrofitted Boeing 747-800 he had flown into the event on. The sudden change of aircraft unfolded against a backdrop of renewed armed escalation between the United States and Iran, just hours after U.S. forces launched large-scale retaliatory strikes against Iranian targets in response to recent attacks on regional commercial shipping.

Trump first broke news of the swap in a social media post, explaining that the gleaming new jet — gifted to the U.S. by Qatar and upgraded at a cost of $400 million — would make an unscheduled stop at Royal Air Force Mildenhall, a U.S. military facility in the United Kingdom, to allow service members to tour the aircraft. He said he would take the older Boeing VC-25A, a plane that has carried U.S. presidents for more than 35 years, back to Washington. When pressed by reporters on whether security concerns driven by rising Iran tensions prompted the switch, Trump declined to give a direct answer, only noting he was “No. 1 on the list for killing” for Iran, and framing the switch as a choice to fly the older jet “for old time’s sake.”

Independent observers and public records have long raised flags about gaps in the Qatari-gifted jet’s defensive capabilities. Photos published since the aircraft’s unveiling confirm it lacks some of the advanced missile detection and countermeasure systems that come standard on the older VC-25A fleet. The U.S. Air Force, which manages the presidential aircraft fleet, previously acknowledged that the Qatari jet — classified as an interim “bridge” aircraft meant to cover delays to the permanent Air Force One replacement program — had key complex engineering modifications intentionally excluded to speed up its entry into service. While the Air Force has repeatedly insisted no compromises were made to presidential security, it deferred all questions about the last-minute swap to the White House.

White House spokesperson Steven Cheung defended the new jet’s security protocols in an official statement, calling it a cutting-edge aircraft outfitted with top-tier safety systems to protect the president and his team. Cheung also acknowledged the administration’s use of tactical misdirection to counter threats, noting: “As the President has said recently, there are many enemies of America who have their sights on him, and we use every tool at our disposal — including distraction and misdirection — to address those threats.”

Further fueling security speculation, flight tracking data showed the transponder on the legacy jet carrying Trump was disabled shortly after takeoff from Turkey, a step typically reserved for travel to high-risk regions rather than scheduled summits hosted by NATO allies. All other world leaders’ aircraft departing the summit, including those from Germany and the United Kingdom, left with fully visible transponders. The new Qatari-gifted jet departed Turkey several hours ahead of Trump’s plane and landed without incident at RAF Mildenhall later Wednesday.

Geopolitical context adds weight to security concerns: Iran’s military arsenal includes drones and ballistic missiles with a range capable of reaching Turkey from Iran’s borders — a distance of roughly 800 miles. However, Washington-based think tank the Center for Strategic and International Studies confirms Iran does not currently possess weaponry with the range and accuracy to strike the United Kingdom, where the new jet was headed.

Jeremiah Gertler, senior aviation and defense analyst at industry consulting firm Teal Group, told the Associated Press that the gaps in defensive systems and a reduced number of communications antennas on the interim jet suggest it is only suited for domestic U.S. travel. The permanent replacement program for the aging Cold War-era VC-25A fleet — originally built to withstand nuclear blast effects and equipped with features including an onboard operating room and air-to-air refueling capabilities — has been plagued by delays, with the new permanent aircraft not expected to enter service until 2028. Trump’s flight to North Dakota last week marked the first time he had flown the new Qatari-gifted jet.

ANKARA, Turkey — The high-stakes NATO summit held in the Turkish capital on Wednesday appeared poised for chaos before U.S. President Donald Trump and allied heads of state even convened formal discussions. Despite lingering tensions fueled by renewed criticism of U.S. allies from Trump that cast public doubt on his commitment to the transatlantic alliance, alliance leaders emerged with a unified reaffirmation of their core mutual defense promise.

In post-summit remarks to reporters, Trump pushed back against narratives of division, saying, “There was a lot of love in that room. A lot of unity. We’ve had a tremendous time and I think a great success.” In the official summit declaration, leaders framed their commitment to NATO’s foundational Article 5 — which codifies the principle that an attack on one member constitutes an attack on all — as “ironclad.”

This public show of unity came after a awkward interlude: NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte claimed allies “warmly welcomed President Trump’s leadership,” a statement that jarred with Trump’s recent public demand that the U.S. take control of Greenland, an autonomous territory of NATO member Denmark. Still, Rutte framed the gathering as a clear success for the alliance, stating simply, “The message from this summit is simple. NATO delivers.”

Among the most unexpected developments to emerge from the gathering was the fallout from Trump’s recent decision to approve retaliatory military strikes against Iran, authorized shortly after he left a NATO leaders’ dinner. The unusual timing of the order, announced mid-summit, highlighted a longstanding grievance Trump has held against the alliance: he has repeatedly complained that NATO allies have failed to contribute to efforts to keep the strategic Strait of Hormuz open to international shipping.

Intriguingly, Rutte declined to rule out a future NATO role in any broader conflict involving Iran. “Obviously Iran is outside NATO territory,” Rutte said, adding: “If helpful, NATO is always willing to play a role. But first now, let’s see what happens over the coming days and weeks.” The open door to NATO involvement aligns with Trump’s priorities, though it has stirred unease among many member states. NATO has billed itself as a defensive alliance focused exclusively on transatlantic security, and its last out-of-area mission in Afghanistan ended in chaotic withdrawal, leaving allies deeply reluctant to be drawn into new extra-regional conflicts.

One of the most consequential announcements for the ongoing war in Ukraine came directly from Trump, who revealed the U.S. will grant Ukraine a manufacturing license to produce Patriot air defense systems domestically to counter Russian missile and drone strikes. This long-sought concession marks a major breakthrough for Ukraine, which has entered the fifth year of its war against Russian invasion and has urgently needed expanded access to the advanced air defense technology.

“We’ll give them the right to make Patriots. We’ll show them how to do it,” Trump said during a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. “I think they can produce them pretty quickly.” Patriots are notoriously expensive, in extremely high global demand, and have long production timelines; Zelenskyy has lobbied for expanded access to the systems for years, and more recently pushed for domestic production rights to speed up delivery.

For summit host Turkey, the gathering brought major potential policy shifts. Trump announced the U.S. is prepared to lift longstanding sanctions on Turkey, clearing the path for the possible return of F-35 stealth jet sales to Ankara. The announcement came despite formal objections from Israel. Trump noted he had “haven’t totally made up my mind” on a final decision, but Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan — who has built a close personal rapport with Trump — gave a public thumbs-up after the announcement was translated for him. Turkey was removed from the F-35 program in 2019 after it purchased Russian S-400 air defense systems, a move that violated alliance security guidelines.

Beyond the Patriot license announcement, the summit brought a notable shift in Trump’s public tone toward Ukraine. Dropping his usual harsh criticism of Zelenskyy, Trump praised the Ukrainian leader’s efforts to advance potential negotiations to end the war. “We’ve actually developed a good relationship. It’s hard to believe,” Trump said, adding that Zelenskyy has “done an amazing job” and “been very effective” in leading Ukraine through the conflict.

Alliance leaders also approved a massive 70 billion euro ($80 billion) multi-year military support package for Ukraine, spanning from this year through 2027. The package is structured as 30 billion euros per year from a European Union loan program, paired with 40 billion euros in direct contributions from NATO allies. Notably, the Trump administration has effectively halted all new U.S. military spending for Ukraine, so the U.S. will not contribute to the new package. NATO diplomats confirmed that most of the 40 billion euro allocation for 2026 has already been secured from allies.

Rutte, the new NATO Secretary-General, launched an aggressive outreach effort to accommodate Trump’s longstanding demand that allies increase their own defense spending. He highlighted that European allies and Canada have increased their combined defense spending by nearly $300 billion over the past two years, a shift he directly tied to Trump’s pressure. At a high-profile defense industry event marked by upbeat production and dramatic branding, Rutte celebrated “tens of billions” of dollars in new weapons and military equipment contracts sealed during the summit. “I would argue that without you in this chair, this would not have happened,” Rutte told Trump in a private meeting ahead of the formal summit. “Grab the win. It’s there.”

In the final summit declaration, leaders announced the start of a sweeping transformation of the world’s largest military alliance, centering on the goal of “building the future: a stronger Europe in a stronger NATO.”

One lingering unresolved question emerged around the location and timing of NATO’s next scheduled summit. Albania had been widely expected to host the 2027 gathering, but the final declaration only stated “We look forward to our next meeting,” omitting the standard formal confirmation of the host and date. While Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama is personally popular among allied leaders, some members have cooled on hosting the summit in the Balkan nation due to its low levels of defense spending. Other allies have reportedly pushed back to avoid scheduling a high-profile divisive summit during what could be another election cycle with Trump as U.S. president. Rutte acknowledged that Albania remains the planned venue, but added “of course we still have to decide on an exact time.”

Associated Press reporters Seung Min Kim in Ankara, Michelle L. Price, and Collin Binkley in Washington contributed reporting to this article.

At Wednesday’s NATO summit held in Ankara, U.S. President Donald Trump made a landmark announcement to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy: the United States will grant Ukraine a license to domestically produce Patriot air defense interceptor missiles, a critical capability Kyiv has urgently sought to fend off intensifying Russian ballistic missile attacks.

“We are gonna give you a licence to make Patriots,” Trump told Zelenskyy during the meeting. “I think they can produce them very quickly once we explain it.” The U.S. leader added that he had not yet notified the two primary manufacturers of the Patriot system—defense giants Lockheed Martin and Raytheon—of his decision, but expressed confidence that the plan would move forward smoothly.

The Patriot system, globally recognized as one of the world’s most capable air defense platforms, is designed to detect and destroy incoming hostile missiles. However, it is also one of the most expensive: a full single battery, including its complement of interceptors, carries an estimated price tag of roughly $1 billion. Production of the missiles is also a slow, complex process, with U.S. Department of Defense data showing only 600 interceptors roll off production lines annually.

Washington has been unwilling to draw down its existing stockpile of Patriots for Ukraine, a reluctance underscored by data from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a Washington-based think tank. The group notes that the U.S. already depleted more than half of its Patriot stockpile during its conflict with Iran earlier this year. “We have Patriots, but we don’t have that many. We need them for ourselves too,” Trump acknowledged.

For Ukraine, the need for additional Patriot interceptors could not be more pressing. Over recent months, Russia has dramatically ramped up its ballistic missile campaign against Ukrainian targets, with dozens of fatalities recorded in Kyiv alone in the week leading up to the NATO summit. As far back as late May, Zelenskyy publicly confirmed that Ukraine had submitted a formal request to the U.S. for authorization to produce Patriots under license.

After more than four years of full-scale war, frontline fighting has largely stagnated, and maritime activity across the Black Sea remains at a standstill. Ukraine has also developed effective tactics to counter the nearly nightly waves of Iranian-designed Shahed drones Russia launches at its infrastructure. But ballistic missiles remain Russia’s “last major advantage,” as Zelenskyy has framed them: they travel at hypersonic speeds along steep trajectories, making them far harder to intercept than slower drones, and many routinely breach Ukraine’s overstretched, under-resourced air defense networks.

Just days before the summit, the Ukrainian Air Force revealed that a severe shortage of interceptor missiles left its defenses unable to shoot down a single one of the 23 Russian ballistic missiles fired in a major Sunday night attack. The strike killed more than 20 civilians.

Trump framed the license offer as a solution to Ukraine’s repeated calls for more air defense capabilities, saying it would mean Ukraine “couldn’t complain that we’re not giving them enough.”

Despite the announcement, however, skepticism remains widespread in Kyiv about the feasibility of producing the advanced interceptors on Ukrainian territory amid ongoing war. Military expert Ivan Stupak, a former Ukrainian security service officer, told the BBC that while Patriots are irreplaceable for Ukraine’s national defense, domestic manufacturing is not currently possible. “Unfortunately, Ukraine is not able to produce such kinds of advanced munition, because it’s really sophisticated, cutting-edge equipment,” Stupak explained.

Stupak argued that any licensed production would most likely be relocated to other European soil under Western supervision, a shift that would add many months to the process. He added that security concerns make production in Ukraine impossible right now: “We have no safe place on the entire Ukrainian territory.”

Beyond the Patriot announcement, the summit discussion also covered Ukraine’s recent long-range strike campaign, which has successfully hit Russian targets thousands of kilometers behind the front line. Trump acknowledged that the strikes represent an escalation of the conflict, but argued that the pressure could ultimately help bring the war to a close: “It’s an escalation, but it’s also an escalation that can help lead to an end.”

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who joined Trump for the meeting, echoed that framing, saying Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries are necessary to demonstrate to the Kremlin that its own airspace is far from impenetrable, creating greater incentive for Moscow to negotiate an end to the conflict.

Trump also repeated his longstanding claim that Russian President Vladimir Putin, with whom Trump says he speaks regularly, is open to striking a peace deal to end the full-scale invasion that began in 2022. The U.S. president has made similar assertions repeatedly, but his past efforts to broker peace talks between Kyiv and Moscow have yet to produce any tangible progress.

As he has done in the past, Trump raised the possibility of a direct meeting between Zelenskyy and Putin to negotiate an end to hostilities. Putin has repeatedly stated he would be open to such a meeting, but has insisted it be held in Moscow—a condition widely viewed as a provocation, since the Kremlin knows Zelenskyy would never agree to travel to the Russian capital for talks. When Trump asked Zelenskyy directly if he would be willing to travel to Moscow, the Ukrainian president responded with a characteristic quip: “It’s difficult – there are a lot of Ukrainian drones there.”

PARIS – France’s 2025 presidential election, already one of the most consequential political contests in the European Union this cycle, has taken an unprecedented turn after far-right leader Marine Le Pen confirmed she will stand for the nation’s highest office for the fourth consecutive time – a bid that became possible only after a Paris appeals court revised a prior conviction that threatened to end her political ambitions.

The 2026 NATO summit hosted in Ankara has become a stage for fresh diplomatic friction, as U.S. President Donald Trump launched a new public criticism of alliance member Spain and reignited his long-stated ambition to acquire the self-governing Danish territory of Greenland. Speaking alongside newly appointed NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Trump issued a stark threat to cut off all bilateral trade with Spain, labeling the Southern European ally a ‘wasted cause’ and a ‘terrible partner’ within the transatlantic defensive alliance. He also framed NATO allies’ widespread opposition to his Greenland takeover plan as a major sticking point for U.S. interests. The public outburst stems from long-simmering tensions between the Trump administration and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s socialist government. Earlier this year, Sánchez refused U.S. requests to access Spanish military bases at Morón and Rota for operational missions tied to the conflict with Iran, a stance that already drew Trump’s anger. The U.S. president has also repeatedly pushed Spain to ramp up its defense spending to 5% of gross domestic product, a demand Sánchez has rejected as unreasonable and counterproductive. Currently, Spain meets the existing NATO defense spending target of 2% of GDP, a benchmark many members have only recently hit. This is not the first time Trump has threatened Spain with trade restrictions: he issued an identical warning back in March 2026, after Sánchez publicly stated his opposition to joining military action against Iran. That threat never translated into actual policy changes, and economic data points to the mutually beneficial nature of the bilateral trade relationship. According to figures from the U.S. Congress, total two-way trade between the two nations reached $75 billion in 2025, with the U.S. holding a $3 billion trade surplus over Spain – a fact Madrid has repeatedly highlighted to emphasize the imbalance works in Washington’s favor. Despite the sharp public rebuke from Trump, Spanish officials have responded with deliberate calm, stressing that bilateral relations remain stable and constructive. Following the public confrontation, Sánchez told reporters that he had an informal, friendly chat with Trump during the summit focused on the ongoing FIFA World Cup, and denied any atmosphere of tension between the two leaders. Madrid government sources reaffirmed that Spain has no plans to adjust its long-standing, robust social, cultural and economic ties with the U.S. and will maintain its policy positions unchanged. The European Union has quickly stepped forward to back Spain, with European Commission spokesperson Olof Gill noting that EU-U.S. trade is deeply integrated and delivers mutual benefits for both blocs. Gill emphasized that the European executive will always fully protect the interests of the EU and all its member states, reminding stakeholders of the comprehensive EU-U.S. trade agreement finalized last year that establishes structured tariff rules for cross-Atlantic imports. Beyond his attack on Spain, Trump used the summit platform to repeat long-held grievances against NATO allies, claiming that the alliance has failed to meet its commitments to the U.S. even as Washington has shouldered massive defense costs to protect Europe from Russian aggression. ‘We’ve been there for them, but they weren’t there for us,’ Trump told reporters, asserting that the U.S. has poured more than $1 trillion into European defense efforts in recent years. The U.S. president also once again pushed his controversial plan to acquire Greenland, arguing that the Arctic territory is strategically critical for U.S. national security, and claiming it holds little value for Denmark. Greenland is a semi-autonomous territory that remains under Danish sovereignty, and both Copenhagen and Nuuk have repeatedly rejected any suggestion that the territory is up for sale. On the sidelines of the NATO summit, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen reaffirmed that long-standing position, while the European Commission stressed that any decisions regarding Greenland’s status are exclusively for Greenlandic and Danish stakeholders to make. Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen later noted that while Trump raised the topic publicly with reporters, he did not bring up the acquisition proposal during closed-door summit negotiations. Despite the public drama generated by Trump’s comments, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte characterized the summit as a tremendous success, highlighting that all 32 member states reaffirmed their unwavering commitment to the alliance’s Article 5 mutual defense clause, which frames an attack on one member as an attack on all.

LONDON – Seventy-one years after Ruth Ellis became the final woman executed in Britain, the UK government has granted her a posthumous conditional pardon, recognizing a profound miscarriage of justice in one of the nation’s most infamous 20th-century legal cases.

Ellis, a 28-year-old nightclub hostess and single mother, was hanged at London’s Holloway Prison on July 13, 1955, after being convicted of murdering her abusive partner, race-car driver David Blakely. The fatal shooting took place outside the Magdala pub in North London’s Hampstead neighborhood on April 10 that same year, following months of escalating abuse that the trial would never consider as a mitigating factor.

Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy announced the long-awaited pardon this Wednesday, clarifying that the executive action does not dispute that Ellis killed Blakely, but instead revises her original sentence: replacing the unlawful by modern standards death penalty with a life imprisonment sentence to correct a clear historical injustice. “This exceptional case exposed a gaping flaw in the mid-century British justice system that cannot stand,” Lammy noted in his official statement.

The killing and subsequent rapid trial sparked immediate national outcry. When Ellis was led to the gallows, nearly 1,000 members of the public gathered outside Holloway Prison for a silent vigil protesting the sentence, turning the case into a cultural and political cause celebre that reshaped British criminal law. Just two years after Ellis’s execution, Parliament passed a landmark bill introducing the diminished responsibility defense, a change legal experts widely trace back to public outrage over the shortcomings of her trial.

For decades after the execution, Ellis’s family campaigned for justice, with her grandchildren leading the modern push to revise her conviction. Last year, legal representatives from Mishcon de Reya submitted a formal pardon application on the family’s behalf, presenting extensive evidence that Ellis met the modern diagnostic criteria for battered woman syndrome. As the firm outlined, multiple witnesses including Ellis’s close friends and treating physicians confirmed Blakely subjected her to repeated brutal abuse: public assaults that left her covered in bruises, a push down a flight of stairs that caused severe injury, and one severe blow to her abdomen that resulted in a miscarriage. Blakely also repeatedly threatened to kill Ellis, leaving her in constant fear for her life.

During the 1955 trial, however, jurors were explicitly barred from considering any evidence of Ellis’s abuse at Blakely’s hands. The entire proceeding lasted little more than 24 hours, and the jury returned a guilty verdict in under 30 minutes. Pardon campaign legal teams argue that if the 1957 diminished responsibility law had been in place at the time of Ellis’s trial, she would likely have been convicted of manslaughter rather than murder, avoiding the death penalty entirely.

Speaking after the pardon announcement, Laura Enston, one of Ellis’s grandchildren, said the acknowledgment of injustice ends a decades-long fight for her family. “Justice has finally been done,” Enston said. “This pardon does not undo what happened 71 years ago. It does not restore the lives that were broken — the children left behind, the years lost. But it says, formally and finally, that Ruth should not have been executed; that the justice system failed her. That acknowledgment matters profoundly to our family.”

Enston also detailed the intergenerational trauma caused by Ellis’s execution. Ellis’s two children never recovered from their mother’s death: her son died by suicide, and lifelong trauma left Ellis’s daughter unable to care for her own children during much of their childhood. “The shadow of Ruth’s execution has fallen across two generations. We have carried shame that was never ours to bear,” Enston added.

The UK formally suspended capital punishment for murder in 1965, and fully abolished the death penalty across all offenses in 1970. Ellis’s case has remained a cultural touchstone in Britain in the decades since her death, inspiring the 1985 feature film *Dance with a Stranger* and a 2024 ITV miniseries titled *A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story*.