France and Germany pledge ‘unshakeable determination’ in face of Russian threat

WorldPolitics
24 Jun 2025 • 5:42 PM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

The world’s most free-thinking newspaper

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  • World leaders have convened in the Netherlands for a two-day Nato summit, with a key objective to endorse a new defence spending target of 5 per cent of each country’s GDP.
  • French president Emmanuel Macron and German chancellor Friedrich Merz jointly expressed support for US efforts to preserving Ukraine's sovereignty and ensuring European security, writing in the Financial Times: "For as long as the current trajectory lasts, Russia will find in France and Germany an unshakeable determination.”
  • But the summit's spotlight shifted from spending pledge to Donald Trump's recent decisions, including his announcement of a short-lived Israel-Iran ceasefire.
  • The ongoing war in Ukraine, now in its fourth year, remains a vital discussion point for Nato.
  • Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky is scheduled to address the Dutch parliament.