Donald Trump meets Mark Rutte at the White House in July 2019. (Photo: AP/Alex Brandon)

NATO spokesperson Farah Dakhlallah said on Saturday in a brief statement that the two side discussed the range of global security issues facing the Alliance.

The meeting took place amid complicated developments in the Russia-Ukraine conflict and Russia-NATO relationship.

Trump has repeatedly complained that many NATO allies rely on the US for defense, and said that he will review the alliance. In his first term Trump aggressively pushed Europe to step up defense spending and questioned the fairness in NATO.

On its website, NATO said Rutte and his team also met Congressman Michael Waltz, Trump’s pick as national security adviser.