Royal and military have dominated during Trump's previous European visits. And that's how it will be this time as well.
The quick visit begins with Tuesday evening's dinner at King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima, where a traditional "family photo" will also be taken, according to the White House. This is followed by a fairly short NATO summit during Wednesday morning and a special meeting thereafter between Trump, NATO chief Mark Rutte and the leaders of Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. At 3 pm, Trump will participate in a press conference.
A similar schedule applied to Trump's very first NATO meeting as president, in May 2017, when speaking times and seating were deliberately kept short to avoid tiring and provoking.
Hugged minister
That time, Trump came to Brussels, which he had only a few months earlier called a "hellhole" during his election campaign.
The concern was great for new aggressive outbursts against the EU or threats not to support other NATO countries.
However, all of that turned out to be a shame. Trump was received by the Belgian royal couple and met EU leaders and NATO colleagues. He pointed out that "everyone must pay more", but otherwise avoided any controversies.
What was most remembered instead was his rough dismissal of Montenegro's then Prime Minister to get to the front among NATO leaders for a photo shoot.
Moving to Portugal
The hope is that this year's meeting will go just as smoothly. Trump will be able to boast of having managed to get other NATO countries to spend significantly more on defense and then quickly go home again. No public speech from him is planned.
Yet, there is again a fear of possible outbursts - not least about bringing home or moving US forces in Europe or critical words about Ukraine.
In the Netherlands, there are many who hope that everything would already be over. Bianca Veenhof, who owns the Berlage bar, near the summit area in The Hague, has moved away from security measures and closed roads.
We have good friends in Portugal, so we're going there for a few days. Then we'll get a little further away from all this misery and frustration, says Veenhoff to the news agency AP.
Wiktor Nummelin/TT
Facts: Trump in Europe
TT
NATO's summit in the Dutch city of The Hague will be the second visit to Europe for US President Donald Trump during his new term. The first was made to Rome in connection with the funeral of Pope Francis at the end of April.
During his first term 2017-20, Trump made twelve trips to Europe. Eight of them had a military character, with NATO meetings, visits to US bases and viewing of military parades. On four occasions, he met with royalty, mainly Britain's Queen Elizabeth II. He also had time to play golf twice.
Trump's most infamous visit to Europe came in 2018 when he met Russian President Vladimir Putin for a summit in Helsinki.
- We have taken steps towards a bright future, said Trump at the press conference afterwards.
