By refusing to agree spending increases to appease US President Donald Trump, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez threatens to derail a NATO summit that Secretary General Mark Rutte needs to run smoothly for the sake of the military alliance’s future survival.

By Anthony Deutsch THE HAGUE (Reuters) -Dutch politician Mark Rutte, appointed to navigate NATO's tricky relationship with Donald Trump, looks set to nail his first summit as secretary general after securing a draft agreement on boosting European defense spending as the U.

When former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte took over as NATO chief last year his primary task was clear: keep Donald Trump on board should he come back to power. That very nearly ended up blowing up in Rutte's face when Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez threw a last-minute spanner in the works by baulking at the spending deal.