Biden and world leaders meet at 2021 NATO summit

By Zamira Rahim, Melissa Macaya and Ed Upright, CNN

Updated 2348 GMT (0748 HKT) June 14, 2021
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7:36 a.m. ET, June 14, 2021

NATO leaders are gathering for the organization's 31st summit. Here's what to expect

From CNN's Kevin Liptak in Brussels

US President Joe Biden meets with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, not pictured, at the NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium, on June 14.
US President Joe Biden meets with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, not pictured, at the NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium, on June 14. Stephanie Lecocq/Pool/AFP/Getty Images

US President Joe Biden has arrived for his first in-person North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit after taking office, vowing to reaffirm the United States' commitment to a military alliance his predecessor in the White House viewed with disdain.

The summit comes as Biden looks to reassert American leadership on the world stage and strengthen global partnerships during his first international trip as President. It comes on the heels of several meetings with US allies and the annual Group of Seven (G7) summit in Cornwall, England.

Biden said Sunday he would reiterate the US's commitment to NATO's collective defense clause and communicate to allies that it believes Article 5 is a "sacred obligation."

Here's what to expect of today's meetings:

  • Biden's different approach: The President is looking to take a vastly different approach to his predecessor, former President Donald Trump, who frequently railed against NATO, questioned the need for the organization and argued the US was contributing more than its fair share to the group.
  • Today's focus: During Monday's summit, NATO leaders are expected to discuss how to manage future threats and "ensure effective burden sharing," according to White House press secretary Jen Psaki.
  • Upcoming announcements: The White House also said in a release on Sunday that during the summit, NATO members will announce a new "strategic concept" that would guide the alliance's approach going forward as the strategic environment changes, including threats from China and Russia. They expect it to be adopted at next year's NATO summit, according to the release.
  • US-Turkey meeting: Biden is also expected to meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan while in Brussels. The meeting could be tense at points, as it comes after Biden officially recognized the massacre of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire as a genocide.

Read more about today's meeting here.

7:00 a.m. ET, June 14, 2021

French President has "long" meeting with Turkish leader ahead of NATO summit

From CNN’s Saskya Vandoorne in Brussels

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, left, greets French President Emmanuel Macron during their meeting within the NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium, on June 14.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, left, greets French President Emmanuel Macron during their meeting within the NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium, on June 14. Turkish Presidency/Murat Cetinmuhurdar/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

French President Emmanuel Macron and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had a “long” meeting on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Brussels on Monday. 

“Ahead of the NATO summit, I had a long one-on-one exchange with President Erdogan,” Macron tweeted on Monday.
“In order to move forward with clarity, respect and exigency.”

According to the French Presidency, the meeting between the two lasted a total of 45 minutes, longer than expected, because the two men were keen to discuss all matters in depth, including strategic clarification among allies on the values, principles and rules within NATO, as well as the situation in Libya and Syria. 

Macron also used the opportunity to clarify his and France’s stance on Islam.

“The meeting was an opportunity for the President to reiterate that France respected Islam and Muslims, that French secularism respected all religions,” a spokesperson for the French Presidency said.

“These are the values ​​of the Republic. Macron highlighted that these values ​​should be respected and should not be instrumentalized.”

US President Joe Biden is also set to meet with Erdogan at today's summit.

See the French president's tweet:

6:58 a.m. ET, June 14, 2021

Biden meets with NATO chief in first alliance summit as US President 

From CNN's Betsy Klein in Brussels

US President Joe Biden meets with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Brussels, Belgium, on June 14.
US President Joe Biden meets with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Brussels, Belgium, on June 14. Stephanie Lecocq/Pool/AFP/Getty Images

US President Joe Biden met with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Brussels after arriving for his first in-person summit of the alliance after taking office.

"I want to make it clear, NATO is critically important for US interests in and of itself. If there weren't one, we would have to invent one. It allows America to conduct its business around the world in a way that never would have occurred were it not for NATO," Biden told reporters, noting the importance of Article Five as a “sacred obligation.”

“I just want all of Europe to know that the United States is there, the United States is there,” Biden said.

The US President cited challenges facing the group of 30 nations, including that Russia is “not acting in a way that is consistent with what we had hoped,” and China, citing agreement at last week’s Group of Seven Summit.

Stoltenberg, echoing other world leaders at the G7 summit, said NATO “will open a new chapter in our transatlantic relationship with the meeting today to discuss a wide range of issues, including Russia.”

He continued, “I think that allied leaders look forward to consulting with you ahead of the meeting with President Putin. We will address China, and we have seen a convergence of views among allies,” outlining China’s “coercive behavior” as something NATO needs to respond to as a group.

Biden also thanked Stoltenberg for his “incredible leadership.”

“Quite frankly, we have competent people coming, but I wish you were not leaving,” he said, praising Stoltenberg’s ability to pull people together.

More on today's summit: The NATO summit comes as Biden looks to reassert American leadership on the world stage and strengthen global partnerships during his first international trip as President. It also comes on the heels of several meetings with US allies and the annual Group of Seven (G7) summit in Cornwall, England.

Biden said Sunday he would reiterate the US's commitment to NATO's collective defense clause and communicate to allies that the US believes Article 5 is a "sacred obligation."

During Monday's summit, NATO leaders are expected to discuss how to manage future threats and "ensure effective burden sharing," according to White House press secretary Jen Psaki.

Read more about today's meeting here.

CNN's Kevin Liptak contributed reporting to this post. 

6:52 a.m. ET, June 14, 2021

NATO chief: China doesn't "share our values" 

From Nina Avramova in London

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has said that China does not “share our values,” citing Bejing's crackdown on democratic protests in Hong Kong and persecution of minorities as a key difference with the alliance.

“We see how they crack down on democratic protests in Hong Kong and also persecute minorities in their own country and use modern technology, social media, facial recognition to monitor and surveillance their own population in a way we've never seen before,” he said ahead of the key summit in Brussels on Monday.  

The issue is about what to do “at home,” explained Stoltenberg, because “China is coming closer to us.” 

“We see them in cyber space, we see China in Africa, in the Artic but we also see China investing heavily in our own critical infrastructure and trying to control it," the NATO chief added.

"We have seen the discussions about 5G Huawei and that's the reason why the NATO 2030 agenda is so important.”

However, China is not an adversary, or enemy, Stoltenberg stressed.

There are also “opportunities” in NATO’s relationship with China, according to the Secretary General.

“For instance, on arms control and climate change we need to talk to China. At the same time, what we have seen over now several years is a significant military build-up by China,” he said.

6:36 a.m. ET, June 14, 2021

Lithuanian leader: Russia is trying to "swallow" Belarus

From CNN's Sharon Braithwaite in London

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda speaks with the press in Brussels, Belgium, on June 14.
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda speaks with the press in Brussels, Belgium, on June 14. Kenzo Tribouillard/Pool/AFP/Getty Images

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said Monday that Russia was trying to "swallow" Belarus and that NATO needed to have a "very clear, united and decisive response" to the situation.

Nauseda made the remarks as he was arriving at the NATO summit in Brussels, which will focus on Russia, China and Afghanistan.

"We have a lot different kinds of threats arising in the region," Nauseda said, adding that the country is seeing "additional threats coming from the east, which are related to aggressive behaviour of Russia."

Nauseda said the situation in Belarus was also becoming an issue for the region.

The country has seen repeated unrest since a hotly disputed election last year.

"What is also very important (is) that we see the efforts of Russia to swallow this country," Nauseda said. 
"Belarus is losing the last elements of the independence, and those trends are very dangerous and we have to be aware of them," he added.

"I would expect that President Biden will send a very clear message about the decisiveness and unity of NATO, and will react with very clear messages to what is happening," he said.

Nauseda added that NATO could not have closer ties with Moscow until the country changed its "pattern of behavior."

6:19 a.m. ET, June 14, 2021

Merkel says Russia, China and Indo-Pacific will be discussed at NATO's summit

From CNN's Stephanie Halasz

German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrives for the NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium, on June 14.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrives for the NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium, on June 14. Francisco Seco/Pool/AFP/Getty Images

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has listed some talking points for the upcoming NATO summit.

Arriving in Brussels, Merkel noted that the event was the first summit with the new US President. 

She then listed some challenges to be discussed on the agenda, including Russia, the Indo-Pacific area and China. 

Regarding Afghanistan, Merkel said leaders will discuss what was achieved there, what can be learned and "future concepts."

The German leader said “hybrid challenges” and cyberattacks would be discussed, as well as Russia’s disinformation campaign, which affects Germany. 

The situation in Ukraine and “threats in Belarus, where human rights are being kicked,” are also on the agenda, Merkel added.

6:11 a.m. ET, June 14, 2021

NATO-US relationship "still existing" despite Trump-era concerns, says Luxembourg leader

Luxembourg's Prime Minister Xavier Bettel arrives for the NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium, on June 14.
Luxembourg's Prime Minister Xavier Bettel arrives for the NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium, on June 14. Francisco Seco/Pool/AFP/Getty Images

The Prime Minister of Luxembourg, Xavier Bettel, has said NATO's relationship with the United States is “still existing,” despite a tense period while former US President Donald Trump was in office.

Bettel said that under President Joe Biden, “we have someone who believes in multilateralism.”

Trump was extremely critical of NATO during his tenure in the White House.

Arriving at NATO headquarters on Monday, Bettel also said that “if we are able to have a better and cleaner and safer world, we don’t need to invest that much in weapons."

"I know it’s not the most popular sentence to say here [at NATO] but it’s a fact," he added.

Bettel also said it was key to not view the entire world as enemies.

“It cannot be that we only talk about people but not with people," the Luxembourg leader said.

5:58 a.m. ET, June 14, 2021

Biden will deliver "some pretty tough messages to President Putin," according to UK's Johnson

From CNN’s Sarah Dean in London

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson arrives for the NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium, on June 14.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson arrives for the NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium, on June 14. Olivier Hoslet/Pool/AFP/Getty Images

US President Joe Biden will “be taking some pretty tough messages to [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin in the course of the next few days," British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Monday.

Johnson was speaking on arrival at the NATO summit in Brussels.

He reflected on the attack in the English city of Salisbury in 2018, “when innocent members of the public faced poisoning from [the nerve agent] novichok." The Prime Minister noted that NATO allies stood by Britain during the crisis.
Johnson said he is “always hopeful things will improve with Russia but I’m afraid so far it’s been pretty disappointing from a UK point of view.”
“When I saw President Putin I made that very clear, I said we are ready to do things differently, we’re ready to try to have closer relations but you’ve got to change the way you behave,” he added. 

The UK leader also said today's summit would involve discussions on “Afghanistan, Ukraine and also the ways we want to modernize NATO."

5:40 a.m. ET, June 14, 2021

NATO doesn't want a new cold war with China, UK leader says

From CNN’s Sarah Dean in London 

NATO does not want a new cold war with China “but I think people see challenges,” UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said as he arrived at the alliance's summit in Brussels today. 

Johnson said there are “things we have to manage together” but that NATO also sees “opportunities” with China.

His comments come after the G7 summit this weekend, which saw that group's strongest condemnation of Beijing in recent decades.

China is also on the agenda for the NATO summit today, with alliance chief Jens Stoltenberg saying that the country poses "some challenges" to security.