Trump to meet NATO secretary general at White House, amid president's vow to remove US from alliance

President Trump will meet Wednesday at the White House with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, amid the president's threats to withdraw from the alliance over what he said was a lack of support among member nation states for the U.S.-Israel war with Iran, paused a day earlier by a ceasefire agreement.

When Trump and Rutte meet, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization chief is likely to express a shared interest in restoring normal maritime trade after hostilities caused ​energy prices to spike globally, two unnamed European diplomats told Reuters. 

Rutte is also expected to attempt to sway Trump away from public criticism of NATO, ​while touting steps that European countries are taking to increase defense spending.

An unnamed NATO official said that Rutte would seek to increase defense industry cooperation and discuss the wars in Iran and Ukraine.

European leaders have not tasked Rutte with committing to an operation in the Strait of Hormuz when he meets with Trump, according to one of the diplomats.

"I expect he will keep up the dialogue on Ukraine and burden-shifting within NATO," another senior European diplomat said, adding that Rutte has said alliance members "should lean into opening Hormuz" after a ceasefire.

Trump dating back to his first term has been critical of NATO, complaining that some member nations are not paying their fair share of the alliance's defense spending guidelines.