Trump says Nato 'no longer obsolete' but reiterates funding concerns

Donald Trump has backtracked on criticism of Nato, saying the organisation is "no longer obsolete".

The US president has questioned the alliance in the past, attacking it during his election campaign and describing it as "obsolete" during an interview with The Times newspaper.

He has also previously said that Nato does not do enough to tackle terrorism and complained that the US pays an unfair share of membership.

But speaking alongside Nato's secretary general Jens Stoltenberg on Tuesday, the US president struck a different note than in the past.

Mr Trump said: "The [Nato] secretary general and I had a productive discussion about what more Nato can do in the fight against terrorism.

"I complained about that a long time ago and they made a change.

"I said it was obsolete. It's no longer obsolete."

The endorsement comes as Nato welcomes its 29th member, Montenegro, after the country received US approval to join the group.

Some of Mr Trump's concerns about Nato remain in place, particularly his contention that member states do not live up to their financial commitments.

"In facing out common challenges we must also ensure that Nato members meet their financial obligations and pay what they owe. Many have not been doing that."

Mr Stoltenberg acknowledged that "burden sharing" was a top priority and that Nato had already seen a boost to its budget.

Mr Trump's change of heart is likely in part down to the souring of US relations with Russia over the Syrian chemical gas attack.

That has been a major focus for US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson during his talks in Moscow.

Mr Trump was upbeat about those talks, saying "things went pretty well, maybe better than anticipated", but acknowledged: "Right now we're not getting along with Russia at all."