Trump landed in Amsterdam just after 19.30 on Tuesday evening. On site are already his armored limousines that were flown in over the weekend.
According to information, a special meeting between Trump and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyj is planned for "early afternoon" on Wednesday.
Yes, I will probably meet him, says Trump himself on the way to Europe, according to the news agency AP.
Royal accommodation
From Ukraine's side, one is eager to get a meeting, which would be a signal of continued support from the US. The memory still lives on from the infamous meeting at the White House in February with sharp attacks on Zelenskyj.
The night is spent royally at Huis ten Bosch – King Willem-Alexander's palace in the city where dinner is also eaten on Tuesday evening.
"Historic. For the first time, an American president is staying at the king's residence", says a source in the White House to AP.
It is likely to further improve Trump's mood, which has already been strengthened by a welcome letter with lavish praise from NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
Fear of outbursts
Whether it is enough to avoid controversy is still uncertain. The nervousness is great in NATO that Trump will come up with new dramatic outbursts, for example, about troop reductions in Europe or support for Ukraine.
At NATO's last summit in Washington last year, Ukraine was promised an "irreversible path" to future membership in NATO.
Something similar is not expected this time, not least since the Trump administration has openly questioned whether Ukraine can ever join.
But last year's words still stand, says Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard (The Moderate Party).
–This declaration should be seen as something that is added to what we adopted then. Both from Vilnius (the summit in 2023) and Washington (2024) we have clear positions for Ukraine's future in NATO and we stand by that, she says at a Swedish press conference in The Hague.
Wiktor Nummelin/TT
Peter Wallberg/TT
Facts: NATO summit in The Hague
TT
The heads of state and government of the 32 NATO countries are holding their formal summit in The Hague in the Netherlands on Wednesday morning.
Secretary General Mark Rutte will hold a final press conference at 14.00. An hour later, US President Donald Trump is also expected to hold a press conference, before returning home to the US a little over an hour later.
On Tuesday evening, the leaders will also meet for dinner with King Willem-Alexander as host, with a preliminary start at 20.30.
