Belgian Prime Minister Says Biden’s Presence At NATO ‘Emphasizes The Renewal Of The Transatlantic Partnership’
Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, as chief of the host country for the NATO gathering, welcomed Biden to the meeting Monday, pronouncing his “presence emphasizes the renewal of the transatlantic partnership.”
The remark was a thinly veiled distinction to Biden’s predecessor, President Donald Trump, who puzzled at times why the United States must defend smaller countries and continuously needled other NATO participants to increase their defense spending.
NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg additionally spoke of “a new chapter in transatlantic relations” in remarks before journalists were ushered out of the meeting.
“No nation and no continent can deal with these challenges alone, however Europe and North America are not alone,” Stoltenberg said. “We stand collectively with NATO.”
Before the start of the meeting, Biden entered the room, fist-bumped Romanian President Klaus Iohannis in a quick greeting and later spoke with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Biden additionally spoke at some length with Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan, with whom he has a meeting scheduled later Monday, and more briefly with France’s president, Emmanuel Macron.