US leader Donald Trump expressed extreme irritation during a meeting at the White House with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte over the reluctance of European countries in the Alliance to provide military bases to the US, the Financial Times (FT) reports, citing sources familiar with the concluded negotiations.
According to the publication, Trump “threatened to punish European countries that he believes do not sufficiently support the war with Iran, but did not outline specific measures at the meeting“.
In recent weeks, the US leader has criticized European capitals for blocking the use of military bases or closing their airspace, and has also accused some NATO countries of not being there when they were needed.
In recent days, Trump has sharply criticized allies in Europe, including Britain, for refusing to join the war with Iran. All EU countries refused to participate in the US military action against the Islamic Republic. In response, the American leader called European allies cowards and promised to “remember this“. He also criticized NATO, calling the alliance “a paper tiger“. In an interview with Reuters published on April 1, Trump said he was disgusted with NATO and was considering withdrawing the US from the alliance.