Trump calls on NATO countries to increase defense spending to 5% of GDP and accuses the EU of treating the United States very poorly | WE

US President Donald Trump presented his plans to conference participants. Davos Forum in Switzerland Thursday, emphasizing his dissatisfaction with the EU's treatment of the United States on economic matters and announcing that he would ask NATO allies to spend 5% of their GDP on defense, three percentage points more than the current objective.

I'm trying to be constructive, because I love Europe, Trump said in his speech via video conference from Washington. From the American point of view, the EU treats us very, very unfairly, very badly,

He then explained the reasons for his complaint, focusing largely on a trade relationship he considers unfairly lopsided, while criticizing fines imposed on U.S. companies for alleged violations of free competition rules, which he called form of hidden taxation. So we have some very big complaints about the EU, Trump said.

The discontent on the economic front adds to Trump's concerns about military spending by many NATO partners, particularly in Europe, which he considers insufficient. He made his demand clear by calling for a significant increase in defense spending. I will also ask all NATO countries to increase their defense spending to 5% of GDP, he said, arguing that other countries' limited contributions represent another way in which the United States is exploited. The search for what he describes as equitable relations, particularly from the perspective of trade balance and military contributions, is at the heart of his approach to international relations.

In his speech, followed by a question-and-answer session with four prominent business leaders, Trump expressed a desire to meet with the president. [Vladimir] Putin will soon push for an end to hostilities in Ukraine. He also noted that he raised the issue during his recent telephone conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Hopefully China can help us end the war between Russia and Ukraine. They have great power over this situation and work well with them. I mentioned it during our telephone conversation with President Xi, he said.

Domestically, Trump insisted he was leading a common-sense revolution. He reiterated his commitment to leading the largest deregulatory campaign in history and achieving the largest tax cut in American history.

The culture war also surfaced in the speech, with Trump promising to abolish all absurd measures promoting diversity, equity and inclusion, which he called discriminatory. He vowed that under his leadership, the United States would once again become a country governed by merit. Overall, the references to the cultural battle were minimal compared to the focus on Argentine President Javier Mileis' speech earlier Thursday morning.

Throughout his speech, Trump's transactional approach to international relations became evident. He referred to reports of an alleged Saudi plan to invest around $600 billion in the United States. I will ask the crown prince, who is a fantastic guy, to round that up to about $1 trillion. I think they will because we've been very good to them, Trump said.

The president's comments were likely a nod to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whom the Biden administration has linked to the dismemberment of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in a Saudi consulate in Turkey. He wasn't the only authoritarian leader praised by Trump, who also said he really likes Xi Jinping.

“I will also ask Saudi Arabia and OPEC to lower the cost of oil,” Trump continued. He argued that reducing oil prices, thereby limiting Russia's revenues, could potentially end the war in Ukraine.

After the initial 15-minute speech, Trump took questions from four business leaders, Ana Botn, president of Banco Santander; Stephen Schwarzman, chairman of Blackstone; Brian Moynihan, CEO of Bank of America; and Patrick Pouyann of Total Energies. Botn and Schwarzman both expressed appreciation for his deregulatory agenda and asked questions about it, although Trump did not delve into details. Botn took the opportunity to briefly introduce his bank to Trump, who responded by saying it had done a fantastic job. Exchanges with Moynihan, however, were less smooth, with Trump criticizing U.S. banks for failing to adequately extend credit to conservatives.

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