Wednesday 01 / May / 2024
New York: Former US President Donald Trump met with Polish President Andrzej Duda on Wednesday in New York, discussing NATO defence spending and other global issues, according to Trump's campaign.
In town for his court appearances in a criminal trial, Trump hosted Duda at his Trump Tower property in Manhattan.
Trump praised the Polish president, saying, "He's done a fantastic job and he's my friend."
"We're behind Poland all the way," Trump added.
Duda called the two-and-a-half hour meeting friendly and "in very nice atmosphere," emphasising the strength of US-Poland relations.
The European conservative, an ardent Trump admirer, had once proposed naming a military base in Poland "Fort Trump."
Trump and Duda discussed a range of issues, including Duda's suggestion for NATO nations to raise their defense budgets to 3% of GDP. This aligns with Trump's previous demands for NATO members to boost their defense spending.
"They also discussed the war between Russia and Ukraine, the conflict with Israel in the Middle East, and many other topics having to do with getting to world peace," the Trump campaign said in a statement.
Duda, who has consistently praised Trump, is a strong supporter of Ukraine. He has urged Washington to increase its support to Kyiv amid continued Russian aggression.
A $95 billion (€88.8 billion) foreign aid bill that would have provided new funding to Ukraine is held up in the US Congress by Trump allies.
Trump has frequently expressed skepticism regarding more aid to Ukraine, thus influencing conservative lawmakers in their opposition to the bill.
Ukraine sorely needs the US funding as it is running out of weaponry and ammunition against Russia's offensive.
Ahead of November election against US President Joe Biden, Trump is taking time to forge ties with foreign leaders.
The almost certain Republican nominee met with British Foreign Secretary David Cameron last week, at the former president's Florida Mar-a-Lago estate.
Last month, Trump hosted Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. In contrast to his recent callers, Orban is a staunch supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
In February, Trump met with Javier Milei, the right-wing populist president of Argentina, who had modelled his election campaign after Trump's, replete with the 'Make Argentina Great Again' slogan hats.
