President Trump on Monday said leaders of NATO member countries thanked him following last week's summit, where he pushed for allies to increase their defense spending.
"Received many calls from leaders of NATO countries thanking me for helping to bring them together and to get them focused on financial obligations, both present & future," Trump tweeted from Helsinki, Finland, before his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"We had a truly great Summit that was inaccurately covered by much of the media. NATO is now strong & rich!" he added.
Received many calls from leaders of NATO countries thanking me for helping to bring them together and to get them focused on financial obligations, both present & future. We had a truly great Summit that was inaccurately covered by much of the media. NATO is now strong & rich!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) 16 July 2018
Trump did not specify which leaders called to thank him. NATO's secretary general has said Trump played an important role in the discussion over spending increases among members of the military alliance.
The president roiled allies during the NATO summit in Brussels by calling for more military spending from other countries. He has long complained that the U.S. provides a disproportionate amount of funding for the organization, and has frequently called on alliance members to boost their defense budgets.
While member nations agreed in 2014 to allocate 2 percent of their respective gross domestic product (GDP) toward defense spending by 2024, Trump has been unsatisfied by the deal.
At last week's summit, he first suggested alliance members raise their goal from 2 percent to 4 percent. He later escalated his rhetoric by demanding countries reach the goal "immediately" rather than meet the 2024 target.
Trump said during a press conference before departing the summit that NATO allies agreed to “substantially up” their defense spending commitments.
French President Emmanuel Macron disputed that characterization. He told reporters that the group affirmed the goal for member nations to contribute 2 percent of their respective GDP toward defense spending by 2024.
Trump's confrontational attitude toward NATO allies raised eyebrows ahead of his summit with Putin, as the alliance seeks to defend Baltic states bordering Russia.
