BRUSSELS President Donald Trump upended the show of unity at NATOs annual summit Wednesday as many allies had feared, claiming that Germany is totally controlled by and captive to Russia and inflating his demands that the alliances members spend more on defense to an unrealistic level.
The presidents comments in Brussels, especially his harsh and unexpected attack on Germany, Europes leading power, overshadowed the alliances ostensible business and undercut its ultimate summit declaration of NATO allies commitment to shared values and a joint defense against Russian aggression.
Under fire for his warm embrace of Russias Vladimir Putin, Trump turned a harsh spotlight on Germanys own ties to Russia, alleging that a natural gas pipeline venture with Moscow has left Angela Merkels government totally controlled and captive to Russia.
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