NATO summit "will be short and purposeful", as Trump wants, and Zelensky will be demoted diplomatically - The Times
Kyiv • UNN
The NATO summit in The Hague will last only two and a half hours due to Trump's desire to shorten meetings. Zelensky was invited, but with a diplomatic demotion to avoid meetings with Trump.
The North Atlantic Alliance (NATO) summit in The Hague will last only two and a half hours. This is due to the reluctance of US President Donald Trump to spend time on lengthy meetings, reports UNN with reference to The Times.
Trump changes the format of the summit in The Hague
The idea is for the summit to be focused, short, and concise... Trump can be impatient, and he himself has said it – a short attention span. The shorter, the better
Typically, the NATO summit format is built around three meetings, each lasting two and a half hours and focusing on geopolitics and strategy. Now, the meeting taking place next week will last only one session.
The summit communique, which will outline NATO's defense spending targets, will contain only five paragraphs on one A4 sheet. For example, last year's meeting in Washington included a declaration of 44 paragraphs, totaling 5,500 words.
Zelensky at the NATO summit
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been invited, but with changes in diplomatic rank. Such measures have been taken to allegedly avoid any awkward meetings with Trump.
A source in the Office of the President confirmed that Zelensky will personally participate in the summit. The President of Ukraine will also attend the dinner hosted by the King of the Netherlands on Tuesday evening.
It is also reported that Russia will still be named a "direct threat" in the summit texts. At the same time, previous statements that Ukraine has an "irreversible path" to membership in the Alliance will not be repeated.
Addendum
Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys stated that Ukraine will not receive an invitation to join NATO during the Alliance summit in The Hague, which will take place next week.