Whether that relates to earlier reports (13.28<\/a>) that Trump told the Nato secretary general, Mark Rutte, he wanted to see concrete commitments within days from Nato members for helping to secure the strait of Hormuz remains to be seen.<\/p>\n Rutte is expected to speak at an event in Washington later today.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a009.50 EDT<\/p>\n Key events<\/p>\n Show key events only<\/p>\n Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature<\/p>\n Closing summary \u2026 and on that note, it\u2019s a wrap for today!<\/p>\n US president Donald Trump has doubled down on his criticism of Nato saying it was \u201cvery disappointing\u201d in another critical social media post on the alliance, just a day after meeting with Nato\u2019s secretary general Mark Rutte (15:13<\/a>).<\/p>\n Rutte is about to deliver a speech in Washington this afternoon, with further live coverage over on the Middle East blog.<\/p>\n But Trump\u2019s criticisms prompted mixed reactions across Europe, with German chancellor Friedrich Merz warning against \u201ca split in Nato\u201d and offering help with securing the strait of Hormuz (16:28<\/a>).<\/p>\n But Czech president Petr Pavel warned that Donald Trump\u2019s recent comments questioning the role of Nato have damaged the alliance\u2019s credibility more than anything the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, has done in several years (13:33<\/a>).<\/p>\n Separately,<\/p>\n The European Commission has demanded an urgent explanation from Hungary after another leaked phone call between foreign minister P\u00e9ter Szijj\u00e1rt\u00f3 and his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, reignited concerns over Budapest\u2019s relationship with the Kremlin (11:08<\/a>, 12:55<\/a>).<\/p>\n The French foreign minister, Jean-No\u00ebl Barrot, accused Hungary of \u201cbetrayal of the solidarity required between countries of the European Union\u201d (11:08<\/a>).<\/p>\n The controversy comes just three days before the key parliamentary election in Hungary, with polls suggesting the opposition Tisza party could have a chance of ousting Viktor Orb\u00e1n after 16 years in power (14:25<\/a>, 15:54<\/a>).<\/p>\n On that note, hopefully I will see you from Budapest tomorrow as we enter the final days of the Hungarian campaign ahead of the big vote on Sunday and will be on the ground to bring you the latest.<\/p>\n If you have any tips, comments or suggestions, email me at jakub.krupa@theguardian.com.<\/p>\n I am also on Bluesky at @jakubkrupa.bsky.social and on X at @jakubkrupa.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Vance and Trump were not meddling in Hungary’s election, US ambassador insists<\/p>\n Back to Hungary, Donald Trump\u2019s ambassador to the EU denied in an AFP interview that the US leader or his vice-president were \u201cmeddling\u201d in Hungary\u2019s election by endorsing nationalist incumbent Viktor Orb\u00e1n<\/a>.<\/p>\n Speaking two days after JD Vance<\/a> travelled to Budapest to stump with Orban, US envoy Andrew Puzder noted that both Trump and his vice-president had \u201cbeen very vocal on their support\u201d for the Hungarian prime minister.<\/p>\n Hungary’s prime minister Viktor Orb\u00e1n, left, and US vice-president JD Vance gesture at the end of a pre-election rally in Budapest, Hungary. Photograph: D\u00e9nes Erd\u0151s\/AP<\/p>\n But the ambassador pushed back at the charge that the visit by Vance \u2013 who railed against Brussels \u201cbureaucrats\u201d he accused of pushing for Orban\u2019s ouster \u2013 amounted to interference.<\/p>\n \u201cI do not believe that what the vice-president or the president did was meddling in the Hungarian election,\u201d Puzder said, adding of Vance: \u201cI think he was careful not to be coercive, or make economic threats, or do the kinds of things that could be coercive.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a>‘We do not want split in Nato,’ Merz says in response to Iran war crisis in relations with US<\/p>\n German chancellor Friedrich Merz said he did not want the US-Israeli campaign in Iran to \u201csplit\u201d Nato or put further pressure on the relations between the US and its European allies, as he suggested Germany could play a role in securing the strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n German chancellor Friedrich Merz holds a press conference in Berlin, Germany. Photograph: Anadolu\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Responding to Trump\u2019s recent criticism of the alliance, Merz said that \u201cwe do not want \u2013 I do not want \u2013 a split in Nato<\/a>,\u201d and cautioned against the war putting \u201cfurther strain\u201d on relations between the US and European Nato partners.<\/p>\n \u201cNato is a guarantor of our security, including and above all in Europe,\u201d he stressed.<\/p>\n He also played down the risk of withdrawal or restriction of US troops stationing in Germany, after media suggestions that Trump was mulling such a move.<\/p>\n He said that he suggested the pair discuss the future of Nato at the alliance\u2019s summit in Ankara in June, adding that it was his \u201cfirm intention\u201d to preserve Nato\u2019s security guarantees for Europe.<\/p>\n Merz separately confirmed plans to help with securing the strait of Hormuz, but stressed that any such mission would \u201cideally\u201d have the backing of the UN security council and of the German parliament, so \u201cno decisions are to be expected within a few days.\u201d<\/p>\n He also offered his take on the state of US negotiations with Iran, warning the ceasefire was \u201cfragile,\u201d and urging for more diplomatic talks to resolve the crisis in a more permanent way.<\/p>\n More on that:<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Opposition Tisza party leads in another poll ahead of Sunday vote in Hungary<\/p>\n Hungary\u2019s centre-right opposition Tisza party appears to lead prime minister Viktor Orb\u00e1n\u2019s ruling Fidesz ahead of a parliamentary election scheduled for Sunday, another poll showed.<\/p>\n P\u00e9ter Magyar, leader of the Tisza party, center right, greets supporters during a rally ahead of a general election in Budapest, Hungary. Photograph: Bloomberg\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Tisza, led by former government insider P\u00e9ter Magyar, had the support of 50% of decided voters, while 37% backed Fidesz, the poll by Idea Institute showed, Reuters reported.<\/p>\n The survey, which had a sample size of 1,500, showed 39% support for Tisza among all voters, with Fidesz backed by 30%.<\/p>\n But \u2013 and that\u2019s a big, big caveat \u2013 some 21% of respondents said they had not decided how they would vote.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Trump calls Nato ‘very disappointing’, suggests it needs to have pressure placed on it to ‘understand anything’<\/p>\n Donald Trump has taken to his Truth Social platform again on Thursday to renew his criticism of the alliance.<\/p>\n The US president posted<\/a> that \u201cnone of these people\u201d (which people is unclear), including \u201cour own, very disappointing Nato, understood anything unless they have pressure placed upon them!!!\u201d. <\/p>\n Whether that relates to earlier reports (13.28<\/a>) that Trump told the Nato secretary general, Mark Rutte, he wanted to see concrete commitments within days from Nato members for helping to secure the strait of Hormuz remains to be seen.<\/p>\n Rutte is expected to speak at an event in Washington later today.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a009.50 EDT<\/p>\n Trump wants to see Nato plans for securing Hormuz strait, Rutte reportedly tells capitals<\/p>\n Nato secretary general Mark Rutte has briefed some capitals that US president Donald Trump<\/a> wants concrete commitments within the next few days for help securing the strait of Hormuz, two European diplomats told Reuters.<\/p>\n The report appears to confirm yesterday\u2019s report in the German economic daily Handelsblatt, claiming<\/a> Nato was considering a naval mission to secure the strait in a move to \u201cappease\u201d Trump (Europe Live Wednesday<\/a>).<\/p>\n The move comes after Rutte\u2019s long meeting with Trump in Washington DC yesterday, after which he said the president was \u201cclearly disappointed\u201d with allies over their refusal to get involved in Iran (10:19<\/a>).<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a008.43 EDT<\/p>\n Majority of Hungary\u2019s voters back continued EU membership, poll finds Europe correspondent<\/p>\n After years of relentless EU-bashing by their nationalist, illiberal prime minister, an overwhelming majority of Hungary\u2019s voters back its membership of the bloc, and most \u2013 including many of Viktor Orb\u00e1n\u2019s voters \u2013 now want a new approach to Brussels.<\/p>\n Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orb\u00e1n is seen on a general elections poster with texts, reading ‘Stop the propaganda (over), Come together against the war (down)’ in Budapest’s 3rd district, Hungary. Photograph: Attila Kisbenedek\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Days before elections at which Orb\u00e1n, who has consistently painted the EU as an enemy of the Hungarian people, risks being ousted after 16 years in power<\/a>, a poll has shown a huge appetite for a recalibration of the country\u2019s relations with the bloc.<\/p>\n The survey, by the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) thinktank, found that 77% of voters support EU membership; three-quarters of respondents \u201ctrust\u201d the bloc; and 68% want at least some degree of change in Hungary\u2019s EU engagement.<\/p>\n EU leaders have largely steered clear of commenting on Sunday\u2019s vote to avoid accusations of seeking to influence it, but Orb\u00e0n\u2019s status as a far-right icon in Europe<\/a> and beyond makes the election the bloc\u2019s most consequential this year.<\/p>\n While the desire for change was strongest (91%) among supporters of P\u00e9ter Magyar, the centre-right challenger whose Tisza party leads Orb\u00e1n\u2019s Fidesz by a double-digit margin in recent polls, nearly half (45%) of Fidesz voters also wanted a reset.<\/p>\n Majorities of Fidesz voters also said they supported Hungary\u2019s continued membership of the EU (65%) and \u201ctrusted\u201d the bloc (64%), while a large minority (43%, compared with 66% in the population as a whole) even backed Hungary joining the euro.<\/p>\n The survey revealed \u201ca different Hungary from the one Orb\u00e1n sells to Europe and his friends around the world\u201d, suggesting the next government would have a mandate to strike a \u201cvery different approach\u201d to relations with the EU, its authors said<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThe poll shows most Hungarians do not share their prime minister\u2019s conception of the EU as an enemy, nor do they align consistently with his other preferences and grievances,\u201d ECFR researchers Piotr Buras and Pawe\u0142 Zerka said.<\/p>\n Czech president Petr Pavel warned that Donald Trump\u2019s recent comments questioning the role of Nato have damaged the alliance\u2019s credibility more than the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, has done in several years.<\/p>\n Pavel, a retired Nato<\/a> general and former chair of the Nato military committee, also said that Trump\u2019s criticism of the alliance over the Iran war was \u201cto put it mildly, unfair\u201d.<\/p>\n The Czech president, Petr Pavel, seen at Prague Castle in November last year. Photograph: Martin Div\u00ed\u0161ek\/EPA<\/p>\n Speaking at an event hosted by the Czech media outlet Seznam Zpr\u00e1vy<\/a> at the Charles University in Prague, Pavel stressed that Nato was built on the principles of deterrence and collective defence.<\/p>\n \u201cThe moment we begin to question the alliance as a single, united entity, ready to act together and very decisively then, of course, its role is lost,\u201d he warned.<\/p>\n \u201cIt must be said that Donald Trump has done more to reduce the alliance\u2019s credibility in the last few weeks than Vladimir Putin has managed in many years. This is, of course, not good news,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n He said that Trump \u2018s criticism appeared to miss the fact that Nato is a defence alliance, and \u201cnot an alliance that will automatically help in wars waged outside its territory\u201d.<\/p>\n Pavel also said that European allies \u201cwere not informed from the very beginning about what the goals and operations were, and in fact no one even asked them for any cooperation\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cOnly when the war began to develop in an perhaps unexpected direction did Donald Trump say that the European allies should take care of safe navigation in the strait of Hormuz, and when he did not receive a positive response, he considered it a disappointment for the whole of Nato,\u201d he said, calling it \u201cunfair.\u201d<\/p>\n Separately, Pavel is currently involved in a bitter clash<\/a> with the Czech foreign minister Petr Macinka over who will represent the country at the upcoming Nato summit in Ankara in June, part of his longstanding dispute with the government over foreign policy competences.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a007.46 EDT<\/p>\n European Commission urges Hungary to urgently ‘explain itself’ after ‘extremely concerning’ leaked calls raise ‘alarming possibility of coordination with Russia’<\/p>\n The European Commission has demanded an urgent explanation from Hungary after another leaked phone call between foreign minister P\u00e9ter Szijj\u00e1rt\u00f3 and his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, reignited concerns over Budapest\u2019s relationship with the Kremlin (11:08<\/a>).<\/p>\n In the recording, Szijj\u00e1rt\u00f3 appeared to offer Lavrov to forward him an internal EU document<\/a> related to Ukraine\u2019s plans to join the European Union.<\/p>\n A commission spokesperson said the recording raised \u201cthe alarming possibility of a member state coordinating with Russia, thus actively working against the security and the interests of the EU.\u201d<\/p>\n Asked about the disclosure, made by a central European consortium of media outlets, EU chief spokesperson Paula Pinho said:<\/p>\n \u201cThe alleged revelations in that additional piece of investigative journalism that you are referring to highlight the alarming possibility of a member state\u2019s government coordinating with Russia, thus actively working against the security and the interests of the EU and all its citizens.<\/p>\n This is therefore extremely concerning, and it is for the member state\u2019s government in question to explain itself as a matter of urgency, and the President [Ursula von der Leyen] will also raise the issue at leaders level.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a007.05 EDT<\/p>\n Is this the end of Viktor Orb\u00e1n\u2019s regime? – podcast<\/p>\n Flora Garamvolgyi<\/p>\n \u201cHungary has been a model for the Trump presidency for a while now,\u201d the Guardian journalist Flora Garamvolgyi tells Helen Pidd after JD Vance\u2019s visit to Budapest this week. \u201cAnd US Republicans looked at Hungary for these past years as a model to follow.\u201d<\/p>\n US vice-president JD Vance and Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orb\u00e1n shake hands on stage in Budapest, Hungary. Photograph: Jonathan Ernst\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201c[Viktor] Orb\u00e1n is currently on his fourth consecutive term. And the fact that he has been so successful and he had similar narrative, similar ideologies to US Republicans in terms of immigration, for example, I think they have found a link to connect with Orb\u00e1n and they were studying his success.\u201d<\/p>\n But as polls suggest this election will be challenging for Orb\u00e1n, will Hungarians decide his time is up?<\/p>\n Listen to our Today in Focus podcast:<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n But Hungary\u2019s embattled prime minister Viktor Orb\u00e1n<\/a> rejected suggestions of close proximity to Russia, telling a rally that \u201cit was not the Russians, but the US vice-president who visited Hungary\u201d to endorse him this week.<\/p>\n In a clip from a recent rally, published<\/a> by his international spokesperson, Zolt\u00e1n Kov\u00e1cs, Orb\u00e1n insisted that Hungary remains part of the west, but is \u201churt by what we see is happening to western Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt pains us that the German Christian Democrats, the CSU, have become a left-wing party to such an extent that it has become impossible to cooperate with them. Today our strongest anchor to the western world is not our sister parties in Germany, but the Republicans in the US, with whom we are cooperating,\u201d he argued.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a005.35 EDT<\/p>\n France accuses Hungary of ‘betrayal of solidarity’ after leaked recording of minister’s phone call with Russia<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the French foreign minister, Jean-No\u00ebl Barrot, accused Hungary of \u201cbetrayal of the solidarity required between countries of the European Union\u201d after the latest revelations about his Hungarian counterpart P\u00e9ter Szijj\u00e1rt\u00f3\u2019s contacts with Russia.<\/p>\n In leaked recordings obtained by a consortium<\/a> of investigative reporters, Szijj\u00e1rt\u00f3 appeared to offer to send Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov a document about Ukraine\u2019s EU accession.<\/p>\n \u201cI will send it to you. It\u2019s not a problem,\u201d Szijj\u00e1rt\u00f3 reportedly said, after Lavrov said that Moscow was trying to get a document about the role of minority languages in Ukraine\u2019s EU accession talks.<\/p>\n Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov speaks with his Hungarian counterpart P\u00e9ter Szijj\u00e1rt\u00f3 in Moscow in November last year. Photograph: Alexander Nemenov\/Reuters<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a betrayal of the solidarity required between the countries of the European Union,\u201d Barrot told broadcaster France<\/a> Inter.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we want to be strong in a world where new empires are rising, then we must be united and we must stand in solidarity,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n On Wednesday, Poland\u2019s prime minister Donald Tusk also criticised Hungary<\/a>, saying the recording was \u201creally beyond shocking\u201d.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a005.10 EDT<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s strong views on Nato<\/a> and Greenland understandably carry extra weight in Denmark, where political parties are still locked in talks to form a new government after last month\u2019s election.<\/p>\n The question of Greenland\u2019s future is not going anywhere anytime soon, and our Nordic correspondent Miranda Bryant spoke recently to a Greenlandic pro-independence politician elected to the new Danish parliament.<\/p>\n Qarsoq H\u00f8egh-Dam is the first member of the pro-independence Naleraq to be elected to the Danish parliament. Photograph: Sebastian Elias Uth\/Reuters<\/p>\n Qarsoq H\u00f8egh-Dam is clear that if all goes to plan, the largely autonomous Arctic territory will be the sole responsibility of the parliament in Nuuk, the island\u2019s capital. And there will no longer be any need for two seats representing Greenland<\/a> in Copenhagen, its former colonial ruler.<\/p>\n Read Miranda\u2019s piece here:<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Morning opening: Trump lashes out against Nato after Rutte says president is ‘clearly disappointed’ with allies The US president, Donald Trump<\/a>, has once again lashed out against Nato after a tense and lengthy meeting with the alliance\u2019s secretary general, Mark Rutte, who admitted Trump was \u201cclearly disappointed\u201d with allies over their refusal to get involved in Iran.<\/p>\n Nato secrertary general Mark Rutte arrives at the White House for a meeting with US President Donald Trump. Photograph: Kent Nishimura\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/p>\n In another angry ALL CAPS post on social media overnight, Trump said:<\/p>\n \u201cNATO WASN\u2019T THERE WHEN WE NEEDED THEM, AND THEY WON\u2019T BE THERE IF WE NEED THEM AGAIN. REMEMBER GREENLAND, THAT BIG, POORLY RUN, PIECE OF ICE!!!\u201d<\/p>\n In reality, though, the only time Nato<\/a> has ever triggered its collective defence clause in Article 5 was after 9\/11 in the US, and the allies, in fact, were very much there when the US needed them.<\/p>\n It\u2019s quite telling that despite repeatedly being told off for this very narrative by several European leaders, Trump keeps doubling down on this (factually incorrect) claim.<\/p>\n From Rutte\u2019s comments to CNN last night, it\u2019s clear that the meeting was very tense as he pointedly did not deny that Trump threatened to pull out of the alliance, as also suggested by the White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt.<\/p>\n Ever a diplomat \u2013 although his critics often say he is positioning himself too close to Trump with his over-the-top praise for his impact on the alliance \u2013 Rutte said that the president was \u201cclearly disappointed\u201d and made that clear in a \u201cvery frank, very open\u201d discussion between \u201ctwo good friends\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cHe clearly told me what he thought of what happened over the last couple of weeks,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cBut at the same time, I was also able to point him to the fact that the large majority of European nations has been helpful with basing, with logistics, with overflights, with making sure that they live up to the[ir] commitments,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The Wall Street Journal reported<\/a> (\u00a3) overnight that \u201cthe White House is considering a plan to punish some members of the Nato alliance that President Trump thinks were unhelpful to the US and Israel during the Iran war.\u201d<\/p>\n Rutte in effect declined to comment on this report, saying instead that \u201cnot all European nations lived up to those commitments, and I totally understand that he is disappointed\u201d and repeatedly praising Trump\u2019s broader leadership (going even as far as claiming that the world is safer now than before the Iran war.)<\/p>\n But he still insisted it was a \u201cnuanced\u201d picture and \u201ca large majority of European countries, and that\u2019s what we discussed today, have done what they promised\u201d they would.<\/p>\n It remains to be seen if he actually convinced Trump at all. We will hear from Rutte again later today as he is due to deliver a speech in Washington late afternoon.<\/p>\n Elsewhere, I will bring you the latest updates from Hungary, just days before a key parliamentary vote on Sunday. As the US vice-president, JD Vance, left the country after his repeated endorsement of Viktor Orb\u00e1n<\/a> which is obviously very much not interfering with the election, not at all, the attention turns back to domestic campaign.<\/p>\n It\u2019s Thursday, 9 April 2026, it\u2019s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.<\/p>\n Good morning.<\/p>\n![\"Jakub](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1775752869_213_Jakub_Krupa.png\")
Jakub Krupa<\/p>\n![\"Jon](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Jon_Henley,_L.png\")
Jon Henley<\/p>\n![\"Is](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1775752870_440_1598.jpg\")
Is this the end of Viktor Orb\u00e1n in Hungary?Share<\/a>Trump hurt Nato’s credibility more in recent weeks than Putin managed in years, Czech president says<\/p>\nJakub Krupa<\/p>\n