President Donald Trump has a meeting with Pope Francis, then arrives in Belgium for a NATO summit.
BRUSSELS — After a serene visit to the Vatican and a meeting with Pope Francis, President Donald Trump arrived Wednesday in Brussels as thousands of demonstrators took to the streets, and the Belgian prime minister said he spoke with the president “without taboos.”
Trump, who a year ago said Brussels had turned into a “hellhole,” oozed charm as he met with Belgian King Philippe and moved on to a discussion with top ministers on the eve of a NATO summit, the main event of his two-day stopover in Belgium.
Prime Minister Charles Michel said he insisted that Trump should back the Paris Agreement on climate change and honor the U.S. commitment to multilateral trade agreements, two issues on which Trump has raised doubts.
“It was a discussion without taboos. There was no diplomatic language. The messages were direct from both sides,” Michel said.
Climate change will be a focus of a G-7 meeting in Sicily on Friday, and Trump has yet to clearly commit to respecting the landmark Paris Agreement aimed at controlling global warming.
Trump and Michel said they agreed when it came to terrorism, once again an immediate topic in Europe in the wake of the U.K. attack this week.
“We will win. 100 percent,” said Trump, whom Michel called an ally in the global fight against terror.
About a mile away, thousands of protesters shouted “We don’t want Trump!!” They harangued Trump on everything from his plans to build a wall on the U.S.Mexico border to his treatment of women and promotion of the coal industry.
Trump had a light schedule in Brussels before talks with European Union officials scheduled for Thursday morning and a full summit of NATO leaders in the evening. Trump plans to fly to Sicily late Thursday.