He complained the United States "pays tens of Billions of Dollars too much to subsidize Europe" and demanded that member nations meet their pledge to spend 2 percent of GDP on defense, which "must ultimately go to 4%!"
Trump took to Twitter to say publicly what he told North Atlantic Treaty Organisation leaders privately on Wednesday, calling on all allies to meet a commitment agreed in 2014 to spend 2 percent of economic output on defense to counter threats ranging from Russia's military modernization to militant attacks on European cities.
"We're supposed to be guarding against Russia, and Germany goes out and pays billions and billions of dollars a year to Russia", Trump said in the presence of reporters.
The U.S. president has taken an aggressive tone during the summit, questioning the value of an alliance that has defined decades of American foreign policy, torching an ally and calling for a massive increase in European defense spending.
Trump's pipeline criticism was an unusual line of attack for a president who has appeared eager to improve relations with Putin and dismissed the US intelligence community's assessment that Russian Federation tried to undermine Western democracy by meddling in the 2016 USA presidential election to help Trump win.
Trump has repeatedly slammed Merkel for supporting a new pipeline that would cement Berlin's client relationship with Russian Federation and increase Moscow's influence.
It is not yet decided whether they will meet at the Kremlin or at the stadium where France is set to play the victor of Wednesday night's semi-final between England and Croatia, the aide said.
Although administration officials point to the long-standing alliance between the United States and the United Kingdom, Mr. Trump's itinerary will largely keep him out of central London, where significant protests are expected. Energy exports represent Russia's main source of revenue, and Trump argues that the pipeline undermines NATO's objective, as it's created to counter Russian aggression.
Trump, interjecting, asked why that was - and Stoltenberg responded it was "because of your leadership and your message".
"Germany will have nearly 70 per cent of their country controlled by Russian Federation with natural gas..."
"President Trump's brazen insults and denigration of one of America's most steadfast allies, Germany, is an embarrassment".
"You know, we're protecting Germany, we're protecting France", Trump said.
As well as Merkel, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Charles Michel, the prime minister of Belgium, were also singled out by Trump for undershooting on their spending targets when US taxpayers, funding a defense budget worth about 3.6 percent of their national income, foot much of NATO's bills.
"Because of me they've [NATO] raised about $40 billion over the previous year", the U.S. leader told journalists standing next to NATO Secretary General.
The defense minister agreed with Trump about defense spending.
Mrs Merkel told reporters: "I am very happy that today we are united in freedom as the Federal Republic of Germany. He may be the only one, but that's OK with me".
Recommended:
-
Liu Xia in five key dates
The first, Carl von Ossietzky, died of tuberculosis in Germany in 1938 while jailed for opposing Adolf Hitler's Nazi regime. According to a social media post by her brother and a Facebook post by a close associate in Germany, she left for Berlin.LeBron James Sells Movie Script, Might Star In It
Pelinka also found worth in the newcomers' ability to get under the skin of their opponents. Rondo and Stephenson are both playmakers and thrive with the ball in their hands.Stormy Daniels arrested at strip club for 'letting patrons touch her'
Avenatti told DailyMail.com Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, had been performing on stage when she was arrested. He later tweeted that he expected Daniels to be released on bail "shortly" and charged with a misdemeanour for "touching". -
Papa John's founder John Schnatter resigns as chairman over N-word controversy
Laundry Service also broke off its relationship with the company. Papa John's will appoint a new chairman in the coming weeks. Schnatter, 56, stepped down as Papa John's CEO in January.Woman accidentally steals vehicle for two weeks
The keys she turned in belonged to a Nissan Infiniti rather than a Sentra, leaving the manager "slightly confused", said police. Since the rental auto used the same system she was none the wiser to the mixup and drove off on her merry way.Senator Graham Slams Democratic Dissent of Kavanaugh
However, Brewer said she does not think McCain will make it back to the Senate in order to vote on the Kavanaugh confirmation. Those included a number of disputed cases, including ones supporting same-sex marriage and a woman's right to an abortion . -
Canceling Joint Exercise with South Korea Saved $14 Million: DoD
Accusations from USA politicians, however, have triggered nationalistic sentiment among Chinese netizens. Trump later added on Twitter that the decision would "save a fortune".Gareth Southgate defends Harry Kane from semi-final criticism
But the team will be stronger for it. "Semi-finals, they've done what they had to do, they took us to the semi-finals". The country selected 11 host cities to be the venues for the matches of the 2018 World Cup and they are Moscow, St.Rising waters, no air: How Thai cave rescue nearly went wrong
They survived the nine days before they were found by drinking water dripping from the cave walls, officials said. The rescue mission which spanned days was a success after everyone was rescued. -
Love Island 2018: Fans Rage After Idris 'Lies' To Laura About Kiss
The 22-year-old had got into trouble with Laura, 29, for kissing Georgia Steel on his date, and the pair had only just reconciled. But Jack continues to protest his innocence: "The facts are, I ended up kissing her on the lips, I have never denied that".‘Pack those condoms’: Sex health docs warn rare STI could become ‘superbug’
Another problem is that the disease is being misdiagnosed, with patients mistakenly given antibiotics for chlamydia. For men it causes inflammation of the urethra and could lead to watery discharges from the penis.John Kerry rips Trump’s 'disgraceful’ North Atlantic Treaty Organisation speech
He also accused member states of failing to pay their fair share of defense spending and of being in debt to the U.S. Germans wouldn't agree with that.