President Donald Trump finally addressed his claim that his White House predecessor wiretapped him Friday, joking that he and German Chancellor Angela Merkel had "something in common, perhaps."
The President was asked by a German reporter why his White House had cited a Fox News report that claimed that the British surveillance agency GCHQ had been used to wiretap Trump Tower during the election campaign.
He did not apologize to the British government after it said that the report of UK surveillance was "ridiculous."
Turning to Merkel, who was angry to find out after leaks by Edward Snowden that the US National Security Agency had tapped her phone, Trump said "at least we have something in common".
Trump appeared to be irritated to be asked the question by the German reporter, in the latest twist of a two-week controversy ignited by early morning tweets by the President that claimed that President Barack Obama had ordered wiretaps against him last year.
Senior members of the intelligence committees in the House of Representatives and the Senate have said that there was no wiretapping of Trump Tower.
Trump also knocked NATO nations who do not pay their "fair share" for their defense, as he stood side-by-side with Merkel.
He said that many nations owe "vast sums" of money in unpaid dues to the organization.
"These nations must pay what they owe," Trump said during the joint news conference between the two leaders.
The President, however, also expressed strong support for the NATO alliance after raising questions about its utility and relevance during his election campaign.
The German government fell well short of its NATO target of 2% last year, hitting 1.19%. Though it has committed to boosting defense spending this year, Germany will still fall short again.