Meeting Putin, not Nato, may be easiest: Trump!

• Trump told reporters "frankly, Putin may be the easiest of them all. Who would think?"

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday his meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin "may be the easiest" part of his upcoming European tour as he clashed with EU allies again ahead of a Nato summit.Trump left Washington early on Tuesday for Brussels where leaders from the other 28 members of the Nato alliance are hoping for a show of unity despite stark transatlantic tensions on a host of issues.

Speaking about his upcoming meetings on his European trip, including his first summit with Putin next Monday in Helsinki, Trump told reporters "frankly, Putin may be the easiest of them all. Who would think?" He vowed not to be "taken advantage" of by the European Union, which he accuses of freeloading by relying on the United States for its defence while blocking US imports into the bloc, the world's biggest market.

"It's certainly going to be an interesting time with Nato," Trump told journalists. "Nato has not treated us fairly but I think we will work something out. We pay far too much and they pay far too little."