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Trump likely to attend NATO summit in London in December

Leaders of the NATO allies will gather in London for the alliance's 70th anniversary summit in December, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced Wednesday.

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By
Lauren Kent, Sam Quashie-Idun
and
James Frater, CNN
CNN — Leaders of the NATO allies will gather in London for the alliance's 70th anniversary summit in December, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced Wednesday.

As head of the United States government, Donald Trump will be invited, Downing Street told CNN immediately after the announcement. The UK Prime Minister's office said it had no confirmation about whether he would attend.

NATO headquarters in Brussels said it was "highly likely" Trump would attend the heads of state and government meeting. A spokesperson there said no date or venue had been set. The White House has yet to confirm if the President will attend.

The US President was highly critical of the bloc at its annual summit in Brussels in July and has repeatedly called on NATO allies to spend more on defense.

Trump's four-day visit to Britain in the same month, during which large protests were held in London and elsewhere, cost UK police nearly $24 million, according to a police estimate given in October.

"We are grateful to the United Kingdom for agreeing to host this meeting in NATO's 70th anniversary year. London was the home of NATO's first headquarters," a NATO statement announcing London as the venue for the summit said.

"The United Kingdom was one of the Alliance's twelve founding members and continues to play a key role in the Alliance, making essential contributions to our shared security.

"The meeting in London will be an opportunity for Allied Heads of State and Government to address the security challenges we face now and in the future, and to ensure that NATO continues to adapt in order to keep its population of almost one billion people safe."

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