Home United States USA — mix The Latest: Trump attending second day of meetings at NATO

The Latest: Trump attending second day of meetings at NATO

253
0
SHARE

President Donald Trump has arrived at NATO headquarters, where he’s attending a second day of meetings with leaders of the military alliance.
The Latest on President Donald Trump’s trip to Europe (all times local):
9:30 a.m.
President Donald Trump has arrived at NATO headquarters, where he’s attending a second day of meetings with leaders of the military alliance.
Trump was running behind schedule Thursday morning and arrived at the Brussels site a good half an hour later than expected.
A meeting of the North Atlantic Council with Georgia and Ukraine that Trump was scheduled to attend was called into order around 8:50 a.m. Trump arrived around 9:15 a.m.
Other leaders have also been trickling in, and continue to arrive after Trump.
The president is expected to meet with the leaders of Azerbaijan, Romania, Ukraine and Georgia before he travels to London Thursday.
__
8:50 a.m.
President Donald Trump is continuing to hammer NATO nations over their defense spending as he prepares for a second day of meetings in Brussels.
Trump says presidents have been trying to get « Germany and other rich NATO Nations » to pay toward protection from Russia.
He says the U. S. « pays tens of Billions of Dollars too much to subsidize Europe » and is demanding members meet their pledge to spend 2 percent of GDP on defense. He says it « must ultimately » go to 4 percent.
Trump’s railing against a German pipeline deal with Russia, saying it’s « Not acceptable! »
He’s also weighing in on news from the Russia investigation that former FBI lawyer Lisa Page is resisting a subpoena.
Trump alleges, « So much corruption on the other side. Where is the Attorney General? »
__
8:25 a.m.
President Donald Trump will be meeting with the leaders of Azerbaijan, Romania, Ukraine and Georgia as he kicks off his second day at the NATO summit in Brussels.
The president will also be attending a pair of meetings of the North Atlantic Council before he departs for the United Kingdom.
Trump’s first day of meetings with leaders of the military alliance was contentious, with Trump demanding nations spend far more on defense and accusing Germany of being « totally controlled » by Russia because of a pipeline project.
Trump’s next stop will be London, where he’ll be meeting with Queen Elizabeth II and British Prime Minister Theresa May.
May’s government is in turmoil over how to exit the European Union following the Brexit vote.
__
6:30 a.m.
President Donald Trump is tearing into this week’s NATO summit. He’s questioning the value of a military alliance that has defined decades of American foreign policy, torching an ally and proposing a massive increase in European defense spending.
Trump on Wednesday turned a harsh spotlight on Germany’s own ties to Russia. He declared that a natural gas pipeline venture with Moscow has left Angela Merkel’s government « totally controlled » and « captive » to Russia.
The attack against a core ally comes days before Trump is set to meet one-on-one with Russia’s Vladimir Putin.
Trump questioned the necessity of the alliance that formed a bulwark against Soviet aggression.
He tweeted after a day of contentious meetings: « What good is NATO if Germany is paying Russia billions of dollars for gas and energy? »

Continue reading...