Protesters gathered in Brussels, Belgium, on Wednesday to protest President Trump’s arrival in the city.
News reports and social media posts showed thousands of demonstrators carrying signs and chanting in a rebuke of Trump, who once called the city a “hellhole” in the wake of terrorist plots.
Capital police in Brussels reported a crowd of 9,000 protesters.
{mosads}Brussels marks the fourth stop of Trump’s first overseas trip as president. There, he is set to attend a NATO summit before leaving for Sicily to participate in the Group of Seven Summit.
Brussels serves as the headquarters for both NATO and the European Union — two organizations that Trump often assailed on the campaign trail. Since taking office, Trump appears to have reversed course on his opposition to NATO, saying last month that the alliance is no longer “obsolete.”
At the NATO meeting on Thursday, Trump is expected to call on member countries to meet their defense spending obligations under the treaty organization. The president has frequently criticized NATO members for relying too heavily on U.S. defense.