NATO is considering not hosting its annual summit next year in Albania, partly to ease tensions with US President Donald Trump, a frequent critic of the alliance, and to deflect attention from the fact that host country Albania is one of the members with the lowest defense spending.
Bloomberg writes that Albania has been one of the countries that has spent the least on defense within NATO, failing until recently to reach the long-term objective of spending at least 2% of Gross Domestic Product on defense.
According to Bloomberg, Trump during his stay in Ankara again criticized the military alliance, questioning its importance. Trump's continued criticism of NATO has increased the possibility that next year's summit, scheduled to be held in Albania, will not take place, said the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the discussions are confidential.
The final statement of the Ankara summit, expected to be adopted by leaders on Wednesday, contains no reference to the upcoming summit, according to a person familiar with the text.
"When the Summit will take place is still under discussion," NATO's top military official, Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, told Bloomberg TV.
