NATO SG Rutte Meets Bulgarian PM Radev in Brussels — Ankara Summit Preparation and Defense Spending Pledges

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte met with Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev in Brussels on May 28, 2026, as part of his pre-Ankara Leaders' Summit (July 7–8) diplomatic circuit across NATO capitals. **Meeting agenda:** The bilateral focused on Bulgaria's progress toward defense spending targets ahead of the Ankara summit, where allies will be expected to reaffirm or accelerate their paths to the 5% GDP target agreed at the 2025 Hague Summit. Bulgaria — historically one of NATO's lower spenders in Central/Eastern Europe — has been under particular pressure from Rutte following the post-Helsingborg context of structural US disengagement. Rutte presented the meeting as part of the Sec-Gen's preparation circuit ensuring all 32 members have credible Ankara deliverables. **Broader context:** The Rutte-Radev meeting is one of several pre-Ankara bilaterals Rutte has conducted since Helsingborg closed on May 22. The round is designed to ensure that by July 7–8, each ally has a national defense spending trajectory that collectively meets the alliance's aggregate burden-sharing target — and to preempt criticism from Washington that European allies are not delivering on their commitments. Bulgaria's national defense spending trajectory, Patriot contributions, and industrial commitments are expected to be central discussion items. **Ankara preparation stakes:** The July 7–8 Ankara summit is NATO's most consequential leaders' summit since the founding charter, with three core agenda items: (1) the reformulated (non-binding) Ukraine military pledge, deferred from Helsingborg; (2) the European gap-filling plan for US hardware contribution reductions (jets, bombers, submarines, drones); and (3) the defense industrial production framework that Rubio specifically demanded at Helsingborg. Rutte's diplomatic circuit ensures no ally arrives at Ankara without a pre-negotiated national position.