President Donald Trump heads to a two-day NATO summit in Europe laden with uncertainty over Iran’s response to U.S. air strikes, the fate of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the future of U.S. troops based in NATO countries
The Latest: Trump at NATO wants allies — not US — to hike spending to 5%By The Associated PressThe Associated Press
President Donald Trump, aboard Air Force One to the NATO conference, has sought to maintain a ceasefire between Israel and Iran, and said he’s not seeking regime change in Tehran. U.S. intelligence leaders will provide classified briefings as Congress prepares to debate whether to invoke the War Powers Act restraining Trump.
The Supreme Court, without explanation, is allowing President Donald Trump to deport migrants away from home countries. The dissenting liberal justices warned that the court’s action exposes “ thousands to the risk of torture or death.”
Here’s the Latest:
Democratic leader: Thousands of American lives could be at risk
The classified intelligence briefings could turn contentious as many lawmakers feel they have been left in the dark on what led to the strikes and amid escalating tensions between the White House and Congress over the role of the United States internationally — disagreements that don’t always fall along party lines.
“We expect them to explain to the American people what were the results in terms of actually thwarting Iran’s capacity to become a nuclear power and what are the Trump administration’s plans to avoid another potentially disastrous war in the Middle East, where thousands of American lives are potentially at risk,” said House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
▶Read more about congressional responses to Trump’s air strikes on Iran
Intelligence leaders are set to brief Congress on Trump’s Iran strikes
Members of Congress will get classified briefings directly from intelligence leaders three days after Trump directed strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities and a day after Iran struck a U.S. base in Qatar.
Separate House and Senate briefings will be led by CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, along with Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and deputy secretaries of state Christopher Landau and Steve Feinberg.
Democrats and some Republicans have questions about the unilateral decision to launch military action, arguing that the president should have gone to Congress for approval — or at least provided more justification for the attacks.
World shares rally on Trump’s ceasefire announcement
Stocks rallied and oil prices fell Tuesday after U.S. President Donald Trump announced what appears to be a shaky ceasefire in the Israel-Iran war.
The tentative truce proposed by Trump remained uncertain after Israel said Iran had launched missiles into its airspace less than three hours after the ceasefire went into effect. It vowed to retaliate.
Still, investors took heart after Trump said Israel and Iran had agreed to a “complete and total ceasefire” soon after Iran launched limited missile attacks Monday on a U.S. military base in Qatar, retaliating for the American bombing of its nuclear sites over the weekend.
“The Middle East may still be smoldering, but as far as markets are concerned, the fire alarm has been shut off,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary.
▶ Read more about today’s financial market movements
Ukraine’s leader holds meetings on sidelines of NATO summit
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has met caretaker Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof at his official residence across the road from the NATO summit venue in The Hague.
Kyiv’s bid to join the 32-nation alliance has been put in deep freeze by Trump. In a telling sign of Ukraine’s status at the two-day summit, neither leader mentioned NATO by name during brief remarks to reporters Tuesday.
Zelenskyy and Trump’s relationship has been strained since a very public Oval Office bust up earlier this year. But they both are expected to attend a dinner hosted by Dutch King Willem-Alexander Tuesday evening for leaders attending the summit.
▶ Read more about NATO Summit developments
Trump is ‘firm and direct’ in conversation with Netanyahu
Trump spoke to the Israeli prime minister from aboard Air Force and didn’t mince his words, a White House official says.
The official said Trump was “exceptionally firm and direct” with the Israeli prime minister about “what needed to happen to sustain the ceasefire” with Iran. Netanyahu understood the severity of the situation and acknowledged Trump’s concerns, said the official, who insisted on anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly on what the leaders discussed during their call.
Trump also affirmed that he’s not looking for a regime change in Tehran.
Earlier, on his social media site, he posted that “ISRAEL is not going to attack Iran. All planes will turn around and head home, while doing a friendly ‘Plane Wave’ to Iran. Nobody will be hurt, the Ceasefire is in effect!” Trump wrote.
The comments came not long after the president expressed deep frustration with both sides for continued strikes after a deadline to halt hostilities.
— Aamer Madhani
Federal Reserve Chair to face Congress as key interest rate stands
Jerome Powell said Tuesday that the Federal Reserve will continue to wait and see how the economy evolves before deciding whether to reduce its key interest rate, a stance directly at odds with President Donald Trump’s calls for immediate cuts.
“For the time being, we are well positioned to wait to learn more about the likely course of the economy before considering any adjustments to our policy stance,” Powell said in prepared remarks he will deliver early Tuesday before the House Financial Services Committee.
Powell is facing two days of what could be tough grilling on Capitol Hill, as Trump has repeatedly urged the Fed to reduce borrowing costs. Trump lashed out early Tuesday, posting: “I hope Congress really works this very dumb, hardheaded person, over. We will be paying for his incompetence for many years to come.”
Read more about Powell’s appearance before Congress
NATO leaders are expected to endorse a new defense spending pledge
Trump heads to a two-day NATO summit in Europe laden with uncertainty. Iran’s response to U.S. air strikes, the fate of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the future of U.S. troops based in NATO countries are all up in the air.
President Donald Trump’s first appearance at NATO since returning to the White House was supposed to center on how the U.S. secured a historic military spending pledge of 5% GDP from each nation in the defensive alliance — with some exceptions.
But the spotlight is now on Trump’s attempts to broker a ceasefire between Iran and Israel. The sharp U-turn in hostilities just hours before he departed for the summit is sure to dominate the discussions in The Hague, Netherlands.
▶ Read updates about the Israel-Iran war
Exiled Belarusian opposition leader visits NATO summit
Exiled Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya has visited the NATO summit, days after her husband was released from five years of solitary confinement following a meeting between President Alexander Lukashenko and Trump’s envoy for Ukraine in Minsk.
Keith Kellogg became the highest-ranking U.S. official in years to visit Belarus, Moscow’s close and dependent ally.
Siarhei Tsihanouski, a popular blogger and activist who was imprisoned in 2020, was freed along with 13 other political prisoners over the weekend. Known for his anti-Lukashenko slogan “stop the cockroach,” the 46-year-old was arrested after announcing plans to challenge the strongman in the 2020 election and shortly before the campaign began.
Tsikhanouskaya met with Dutch caretaker Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp on the sidelines of the two-day meeting in the Netherlands. Veldkamp called for the release of the “countless other political prisoners” still in captivity.
NATO leaders to agree on historic spending pledge, but the hike won’t apply to all
The head of the NATO military alliance warned Monday that no country could have an opt-out from a massive new hike in defense spending, and that progress they make toward reaching the new target will be reviewed in four years.
At a summit in the Netherlands on Wednesday, NATO leaders are expected to endorse a goal of spending 5% of their gross domestic product on their security, to be able to fulfil the alliance’s plans for defending against outside attack.
“NATO has no opt-out, and NATO does no side deals,” NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte told reporters in The Hague. “It is critical that each ally carries their fair share of the burden.”
However, Spain said that it has reached a deal with NATO to be excluded from the 5% target, while President Donald Trump said the figure shouldn’t apply to the United States, only its allies.
▶ Read more about the NATO summit
US Secret Service is maintaining a greater presence near White House
The Secret Service said it has taken an enhanced security posture on 17th Street near the White House following the strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.
The roving patrols that were already in effect now have a more visible presence with vehicles being kept in place, said a Secret Service spokesperson who insisted on anonymity to discuss the decision.
The greater public visibility on the streets surrounding the White House began Monday before Iran retaliated for the strikes by attacking a U.S. base in Qatar.
— Associated Press Reporter Joshua Boak.
What cases are left on the Supreme Court’s emergency docket?
Trump administration lawyers have filed emergency appeals with the nation’s highest court a little less than once a week on average since the president began his second term, though the pace of new filings has slowed recently.
The court is not being asked to render a final decision but rather to set the rules of the road while the case makes its way through the courts.
The justices have issued orders in 14 cases so far. The Trump administration has won more than it has lost, including on Monday when the high court allowed the resumption of swift removals of migrants to countries other than their homelands.
▶ Read more about the cases left on the Supreme Court’s docket
Justices allow Trump to restart swift deportation of migrants away from home countries
A divided Supreme Court has allowed the Trump administration to restart swift removals of migrants to countries other than their homelands, as Trump continues his sweeping immigration crackdown that has sparked widespread protests, high-profile detentions and various court challenges.
The majority’s action, issued without explanation, lifts for now a court order requiring they get a chance to challenge the deportations. U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy in Boston had found the administration had violated his order by sending eight people to South Sudan in May.
The migrants had been convicted of serious crimes in the U.S. and immigration officials have said they were unable to return them quickly to their home countries. Authorities instead landed the plane at a U.S. naval base in Djibouti.
All three liberal justices dissented, with Justice Sonia Sotomayor writing that the court’s action exposes “ thousands to the risk of torture or death.”
▶ Read more about the Supreme Court’s decision
House Speaker opposes War Powers resolution
Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said there would be a classified briefing for House members Tuesday afternoon.
Johnson, who said he had a classified briefing Monday morning about Iran, said he is opposed to a debate and vote on a use-of-force resolution.
“I don’t think this is an appropriate time for a War Powers resolution. And I don’t think it’s necessary,” Johnson told reporters Monday.
He said Democratic presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama exercised their authority as commander-in-chief in ordering operations in the Middle East. He said Democratic lawmakers didn’t object then.
“Suddenly, now, they are just up in arms,” Johnson said. “It’s all politics. This is not a time for politics.”
Trump will soon face a congressional vote over his military powers
While the president has authority as the commander in chief of the U.S. armed forces to order specific military actions, any prolonged war-time footing would traditionally need authorization from Congress.
The House and Senate authorized actions in Iraq, Afghanistan and beyond after the Sept. 11, 2001, attack.
Trump faces a vote in Congress as soon as this week on a war powers resolution from Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., that would “direct the removal of United States Armed Forces from hostilities against the Islamic Republic of Iran that have not been authorized by Congress.”
Another resolution has been introduced by lawmakers from both parties in the U.S. House.
At least one Democrat, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, said Trump’s actions are “clearly grounds for impeachment.”
