The President of the United States Donald Trump with his assistants developed a formula according to which, in his opinion, payment should be made for the deployment of American troops in the allied countries, reports the Washington Post (WP), citing sources. Mr. Trump called the formula “cost plus 50%”: the allies will have to compensate for all the costs of the stay of the US military on their territory, plus another half of this amount.

This could lead them paying the US five times more than they do now. WP sources claim that rumors about the new formula shocked Germany, South Korea and Japan, where thousands of us military are stationed. The application of the formula has already been discussed in negotiations with one country.

Donald Trump and members of his administration have repeatedly threatened to reduce the cost of maintaining NATO — if all other countries will continue to ignore the obligation to spend at least 2% of its GDP on defense. The US President is dissatisfied that the allies receive military support “for free”.