Key facts
- Plans for a 2027 NATO summit in Albania are in doubt.
- The US administration and some NATO members are reportedly resistant.
- Albania's current defense spending is a point of concern.
- A draft statement for the upcoming summit in Turkey omits mention of Albania as the next host.
- Albania has committed to increasing defense spending to 2.6% of GDP by 2026.
Plans for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to hold its 2027 summit in Albania are facing significant doubt, according to sources familiar with the matter. Resistance from the Trump administration and dissatisfaction among NATO members regarding Albania's defense spending have cast a shadow over the prospective meeting.
A draft statement for the upcoming NATO summit in Turkey next week does not currently include a mention of Albania as the host for the subsequent gathering, despite a previous declaration that it would take place there. This omission comes as European NATO members aim to demonstrate progress on defense spending pledges to the US President and avoid potential confrontations.
One person familiar with the discussions indicated that Albania's defense spending levels could provoke negative headlines and potentially upset President Trump if a summit were held there in 2027. A European diplomat noted that current draft texts refer to leaders looking forward to their next meeting without specifying a time or place.
An Albanian government spokesperson stated that drafts are subject to change and not final decisions. The White House and NATO officials declined to comment.
At a NATO summit in The Hague last year, leaders pledged to spend 5% of their GDP on defense and defense-related measures within a decade, with 3.5% for core defense and 1.5% for broader measures. However, many countries have struggled to meet the previous 2% of GDP goal. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte recently highlighted Albania, Czechia, and Slovenia as countries not meeting the 2% target but committed to exceeding it this year.
Albania's government has stated it is finalizing fiscal measures to align its 2026 defense expenditure with NATO's pledge, projecting spending to reach 2.6% of GDP, with 2.2% for core defense and 0.4% for other related expenditures. A European diplomat expressed optimism that Albania could still host the summit, stating, "They are ramping up, we shall see where it lands."