Washington: US President Donald Trump and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron discussed a range of pressing international concerns on Syria, Iran and trade in a phone call, the White House said on Tuesday.
In the phone call, the two leaders committed to continuing coordination on Syria, voiced concern over Iran’s steps to advance its nuclear program and also expressed anticipation for attending the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Leaders Meeting in London next month, according to the statement. The United Kingdom will host NATO Heads of State on 3-4 December 2019. Trump has been repeatedly pushing for European countries to increase defense spending, irritating European leaders including Macron. In a recent interview, French President Emmanuel Macron said that “what we are currently experiencing is the brain death of NATO because of lack of strategic coordination and leadership from the United States. Macron said, “we need to recognize that we have a problem.” Trump will also host NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg in Washington on November 14 to discuss military spending and ensuring “more equitable burden-sharing.” The two leaders will discuss the NATO allies’ progress on increasing defence spending and ensuring more equitable burden-sharing. (ANI)
