US hails Sweden as a 'model NATO ally', seeks to deepen cooperation

Washington (ANTARA) – US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday said that Washington views Sweden as a NATO model ally and a close partner for many years, and that they hope to deepen cooperation in the coming years, Rubio said at the signing ceremony for the Prosperity Technology Agreement held in Sweden. Rubio added that the United States and Sweden will build on their shared heritage and history of cooperation in technology and innovation to be more competitive in the years ahead. Earlier on 1 April, President Donald Trump said that he was carefully weighing a withdrawal of the United States from NATO after the alliance refused to join the US–Israel war against Iran. Trump said Europe could no longer be relied upon as a partner after they refused to deploy a naval task force to the Strait of Hormuz. Additionally, Trump had said that US allies in the Middle East were far better than NATO members. He specifically named the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as ‘a good ally,’ while adding that US aid to the country was being considered. ‘If the UAE has problems, though I find it hard to imagine it, but if they have problems, we will be there for them,’ Trump told CNBC in April. Source: Sputnik/RIA Novosti