President Donald Trump is hosting meetings with the secretary general of NATO on Thursday at the White House.
Mark Rutte, who heads the 32-member transatlantic military alliance, will meet with Trump at a pivotal moment for Europe and NATO.
Administration officials are pressing ahead with talks with Moscow to sign off on a U.S. proposal for a 30-day ceasefire that Trump believes could usher in a permanent end to Europe’s biggest land-war since World War II.
Speaking with reporters. Rutte said NATO members need to produce more weapons. The alliance is lagging behind Russia and China in terms of weapons production, Rutte said during a meeting with Trump.
Thursday’s talks also come as Trump’s rhetoric on the alliance continues to leave members uneasy.
Trump last week suggested that the U.S. might abandon its commitments to the alliance if member countries don’t meet defense spending targets, a day after his pick for NATO ambassador assured senators that the administration’s commitment to the military alliance was “ironclad.”
The president also expressed doubt that NATO would come to the United States’ defense if the country were attacked. However, the alliance did just that after Sept. 11 — the only time in its history that the defense guarantee has been invoked.
This story has been updated.
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