President Trump went on a rant about how NATO members and China are taking advantage of the US during a phone call with French President Francois Hollande in another odd exchange with a foreign leader, it was reported Wednesday.
“It was a difficult conversation, because he talks like he’s speaking publicly,” Politico quoted a senior official as saying.
“It’s not the usual way heads of state speak to each other. He speaks with slogans and the conversation was not completely organized.”
Trump’s call with Hollande on Jan. 28 did address issues of concern to the two countries – namely terrorism and the Islamic State – but also veered off into NATO paying its fair share, the website reported.
Pressing Hollande on the alliance, Trump said the US “wants our money back,” said the source, adding that he seemed to be “obsessing over money.”
The president’s phone conversation with Hollande follows a similar pattern of controversial calls with the leaders Australia and Mexico.
In a Jan. 28 call with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Trump blasted an agreement between the two countries for the US to accept 1,250 refugees.
“This was the worst call by far,” Trump told the Australian leader about the deal negotiated by former President Obama.
In a call with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto on Jan. 27, Trump reiterated his pledge that Mexico will pay for a border wall and threatened to use US troops to combat drug cartels to get rid of the “bad hombres down there.”
The White House’s readout of Trump’s call with Hollande said the president “reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to NATO” and “the leaders also lauded our combined efforts to eliminate ISIS in Iraq and Syria.”
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