Trump says NATO countries should 'reimburse' US for defense costs

ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday accused NATO allies of defaulting on their defense spending commitments and indicated they should "reimburse" the United States.

"Many countries in NATO, which we are expected to defend, are not only short of their current commitment of 2% (which is low), but are also delinquent for many years in payments that have not been made," he said, tweeting from the air en route to a key NATO summit in Brussels. "Will they reimburse the U.S.?"

In recent months Trump has repeatedly launched invective at America's partners in the Atlantic alliance, accusing them of freeloading on the US for defense.