LONDON, April 10. /TASS/. During a White House meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, US President Donald Trump expressed extreme irritation over the reluctance of European NATO member states to provide military bases to the US, The Financial Times reported, citing sources.

According to the newspaper, the US leader "threatened to punish European states he deems insufficiently supportive of the war, but did not outline specific measures at the meeting."

The Financial Times also noted that the US leader had lashed out at European capitals for blocking the use of military bases or closing their airspace, and has accused some NATO countries of not being "there when we needed them."

Recently, Trump sharply criticized European allies, including the UK, for refusing to join the war against Iran. All EU countries have refused to participate in military operations against Iran alongside the US. In response, the US leader called European allies cowards and promised to "remember" this. He also criticized NATO, calling the alliance a "paper tiger." In an April 1 interview with Reuters, Trump stated that he has a negative view of NATO and is considering the possibility of the US withdrawing from the alliance.