US President Donald Trump has praised European members of NATO for increasing their defense budgets in line with US requests, but urged them to pay more.

Trump made that statement when he met with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg at the White House on Tuesday.

He took credit for increased defense spending by European nations.

But Trump also reiterated his claim that the US is paying a disproportionate share of the cost of protecting Europe. He said European countries need to further increase their defense budgets, to above the current guideline of two percent of their gross domestic product.

Trump criticized Germany, noting that its defense budget is below the two-percent guideline. He called this unfair, as the US is "paying for a big proportion of NATO."

NHK