Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


Trump, Macron Air Differences at NATO Summit

Patsy Widakuswara

   LONDON - Differences between U.S. President Donald Trump and French
   President Emmanuel Macron were on full display as NATO leaders gathered
   for a summit in London.

   In an almost 40-minute session with journalists the two leaders clashed
   on a number of issues including burden sharing within NATO, terrorism,
   Turkey's incursion into northern Syria, and the U.S. withdrawal from an
   arms treaty with Russia.

   The two leaders met hours after Trump criticized Macron for his recent
   statement describing NATO as experiencing a "brain death," due to
   diminished U.S. leadership. Trump called it a "nasty statement."

   As the two sat down for talks, Trump warned member countries who do not
   meet NATO's guideline of spending 2% of GDP on collective defense could
   be dealt with "from a trade standpoint" referring to tariffs on
   products including French wine.

   This prompted Macron, who is currently contributing 1.9% of France's
   GDB towards NATO's defense, to push back.

   "It's not just about money," Macron said. "What about peace in Europe?"
   he asked Trump.

   "It's impossible just to say we have to put money, we have to put
   soldiers, without being clear on the fundamentals of what NATO should
   be," Macron said.

.