NATO members scolded by Trump
Just heading out of Brussels on way to the G7. Some of the same cast of leaders are heading there from NATO too. Hard to imagine any will truly have a spring in their step.
President Trump didn’t deliver the endorsement of Article 5 of the NATO founding treaty which some hoped he would. He gave the leaders a public dressing down for not paying their way in NATO and even suggested that continuing terrorism should be on their consciences if they don’t cough up. He suggested they were liable for arrears as well.
All 27 had to stand and listen to the lecture, rich countries, he said, who wouldn’t pay their way.
The Prime Minister of Luxembourg said something behind his hand to the leaders of France and Belgium. You can’t lip read when a hand is in the way but I would wager quite a bit is wasn’t a supportive remark.
Other leaders kept a stony face though that early them no grace from the US President who shoved NATO’s newest member, Montenegro’s Prime Minister, to one side to assert his own status at the front of the pack beside the NATO Secretary General.
A short few weeks since he tried to dig himself out of calling NATO “obsolete” by saying he didn’t really know much about it, President Trump tried to redefine its role. He said it should focus on counter-terrorism and stopping world migration surges. Many leaders will be baffled how a military alliance goes about that beyond member nations’ current activity in Isis strongholds.
Some NATO members, especially those on or near Russia’s border, will worry what message President Putin takes from this summit. They believe article 5 must be a sacred text, an absolute, not a bargaining chip in a budgetary battle.
Theresa May spoke to President Trump about the leaked Manchester police investigation material. It must’ve been brief as it was just because they went on stage for a group photo. We don’t know what he said but in a separate statement he said he would punish those responsible. Well we’ll have to see how that goes. His track record on hunting down leakers isn’t awesome.