NATO chief appeals for unity as Europe builds its armies and the US eyes security threats elsewhere

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte appealed for unity on Wednesday as European nations scale up their armed forces and defense industries after the United States warned that Europe must take care of its own security in future.

Trust between the 32 member countries is at a new low. NATO was formed 76 years ago to provide stability in Europe; a guarantee underwritten by the United States. But the Trump administration says America’s security priorities now lie in Asia and on its own borders.

“Let me be absolutely clear, this is not the time to go it alone. Not for Europe or North America,” Rutte said in a speech in Warsaw. “The global security challenges are too great for any of us to face on our own.”

Rutte said that “there is no alternative to NATO” even as some allies worry about the U.S. commitment to the organization’s central principle that an attack on one ally must be considered an attack on them all, while Washington demands that European countries stop free-riding on its massive military budget.

His warning comes as Europe tries to wean itself off its security dependence on the United States, just as it reduced its reliance on Russian energy after President Vladimir Putin ordered his troops into Ukraine three years ago, amid a drive to buy more European military equipment.

“Yes, Europe needs to know that Uncle Sam still has our back, but America also needs to know that its NATO allies will step up and play their full part, without restrictions and without capability gaps," Rutte said. "It’s only fair. Reassurance is a two-way street.”

His comments come on the eve of a visit to Greenland by U.S. Vice President JD Vance. President Donald Trump has not ruled out the use of military force to seize control of Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory belonging to NATO and European Union member Denmark and this has deeply unsettled many allies.

Still, Rutte said he is “absolutely confident” about the U.S. commitment to NATO's Article 5 security guarantee. He added that “nothing can replace America’s nuclear umbrella, the ultimate guarantor of our security.” Britain and France are also nuclear powers but their arsenals are tiny by comparison.

Asked on March 13 whether U.S. forces would defend an ally which came under attack from Russia, Trump said: “We’ll make sure it doesn’t happen.” Trump also said that “you have to keep NATO strong. You have to keep it relevant.”

Rutte said he believes that when Trump and his NATO counterparts meet for a summit in the Netherlands in June, "we will begin a new chapter for our transatlantic alliance where we build a stronger, fairer and more lethal NATO to face a more dangerous world.”

He said that ambitious new spending targets would be set. Twenty-three NATO member countries are estimated to be meeting the current guideline of more than 2% of their gross domestic product on national defense budgets. Rutte has said that the new target would be “well north of 3%.”

Earlier on Wednesday, at talks with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Rutte warned Russia that the alliance would always stand by Poland or any other member and that its reaction to an attack would be “devastating.”

Tusk said it was important to be prepared for any outcome of talks between Russia and the United States aimed at ending t he 3-year-old war in Ukraine.

NATO members along its eastern flank, particularly Poland and the Baltic states, are extremely worried that the talks could end with a settlement that is favorable to Russia. They fear such an outcome would allow Putin to rebuild his country's forces and threaten other countries in the region in the coming years.

Rutte said that neither Putin nor anyone else should assume they could get away with something like that.

“If anyone were to miscalculate and think they can get away with an attack on Poland or on any other ally, they will be met with the full force of this fierce alliance. Our reaction will be devastating. This has to be very clear to Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin and anyone else who wants to attack us," Rutte said.

Cook reported from Brussels.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte gestures during his visit at SGH Warsaw School of Economics in Warsaw, Poland,Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte speaks during his visit at SGH Warsaw School of Economics in Warsaw, Poland, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte speaks during his visit at SGH Warsaw School of Economics in Warsaw, Poland, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte speaks during his visit at SGH Warsaw School of Economics in Warsaw, Poland, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte speaks during his visit at SGH Warsaw School of Economics in Warsaw, Poland, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte speaks during his visit to the SGH Warsaw School of Economics in Warsaw, Poland, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Officials in Minnesota are seeking answers in the case of a University of Minnesota graduate student who’s being detained by U.S. immigration authorities for unknown reasons.

University leadership said Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained the student Thursday at an off-campus residence. Officials said the school was not given advance notice about the detention and did not share information with federal authorities. The student’s name and nationality have not been released.

As the case remained largely a mystery, state and local leaders called on federal authorities to explain their actions.

“My office and I are doing all we can to get information about this concerning case,” Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar said in a post on the social media site X. “We’re in contact with the University and understand they had no prior warning or information that led to this detainment.”

She said that international students are “a major part of the fabric of life in the school and our community.”

The detained student is enrolled in business school at the university’s Twin Cities campus. University officials said the school is providing the student with legal aid and other support services.

What prompted the detention is still unknown. ICE officials have not responded to an Associated Press email requesting comment.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said on X that he is in touch with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

“The University of Minnesota is an international destination for education and research,” Walz wrote. “We have any number of students studying here with visas, and we need answers.”

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey also called the case “deeply troubling.”

“Educational environments must be places where all students can focus on learning and growing without fear,” he wrote on X.

Officials promised to release more information about the case once they have updates.

U.S. immigration authorities have been targeting people with ties to American colleges and universities as President Donald Trump seeks to crackdown on immigrants. Most of the detainees have shown support for Palestinian causes.

The Trump administration has cited a seldom-invoked statute authorizing the secretary of state to revoke visas of noncitizens who could be considered a threat to foreign policy interests. More than half a dozen people are known to have been taken into custody or deported in recent weeks.

In Minneapolis, the university’s graduate labor union organized a protest Saturday outside the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office downtown, according to the Minnesota Star Tribune. Dozens of people joined the rally to stand in solidarity with international students facing uncertain futures under the new Trump administration.

“International students are huge assets to the University of Minnesota,” U.S. Sen. Tina Smith of Minnesota said in a Facebook post. “They move thousands of miles away from their families and support systems to learn from the best and the brightest. I can’t imagine how terrified they are after learning ICE has detained one of their classmates.”

A person walks on campus at University of Minnesota in Minneapolis on April 21, 2020. (Glenn Stubbe/Star Tribune via AP, File)