From the Liveblog of
Thursday, July 12, 2018
Macron denies Trump NATO spending claims, reports of US withdrawal
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleFrench President Emmanuel Macron denies US President Donald Trump’s claim that NATO allies agreed to boost defense spending beyond 2 percent of gross domestic product.
Macron says: There is a communique that was published yesterday. It’s very detailed.” He says it “confirms the goal of 2 percent by 2024. That’s all.”
Macron also denies reports that Trump threatened to withdraw from the military alliance over his complaints that many NATO members are lagging behind in their defense spending.
“President Trump never at any moment, either in public or in private, threatened to withdraw from NATO,” he tells reporters.
He says the leaders of the alliance’s 29 members met in an extraordinary session this morning at the request of NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.
— Agencies
The Times of Israel Community.