Feb. 6 (UPI) — President Donald Trump, addressing service members in Tampa, Fla., promised Monday to bolster the “depleted” U.S. armed forces.
Trump received a briefing from top leaders at the U.S. Central Command and Special Operations Command at MacDill Air Force Base. He ate lunch with troops before his speech.
“We’re going to be loading it up with beautiful new planes and beautiful new equipment,” he promised the base during his 12-minute speech.
He noted the Navy “is at a point almost as low as World War I.”
During the campaign, Trump pledged to put additional resources into the military, including building more ships.
Also before the election, Trump suggested the United States should rethink its involvement in NATO.
But Monday he said: “We strongly support NATO. We only ask that all of the NATO members make their full and proper financial contributions to the NATO alliance, which many of them have not been doing.”
Trump opened his speech by noting his support from the military in the election.
The president was applauded when he said doesn’t want foreigners to come to the United States “to destroy us and destroy our country.” He did not address his executive actions restricting travel from seven Muslim-majority nations.
Trump traveled from Palm Beach after spending the weekend at his Mar-a-Lago resort. He then was headed back to the White House.
