Trump meets NATO chief as US mulls withdrawal from alliance

(Abbey Fenbert – The Kyiv Independent) U.S. President Donald Trump held a closed-door meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in Washington, D.C. on April 8. Rutte’s visit came amid escalating tensions between the White House and the alliance, with Trump saying on April 1 that he was strongly considering pulling the U.S. from NATO. Trump, a longstanding NATO critic, grew frustrated with the alliance over member states’ lack of support for the U.S. war in Iran. Rutte praised Trump in comments to the media following the meeting, though he did not say whether Trump had informed him of plans to leave the alliance. – Trump meets NATO chief as US mulls withdrawal from alliance