[The Trump administration is excluding several major U.S. allies from the NATO meeting] On October 1, the U.S. "Political News Network" cited people familiar with the matter and disclosed on October 1 that the Trump administration is excluding several major U.S. allies from the NATO member meeting to be held next month: U.S. allies and some of the countries with the largest defense spending in Europe were not invited to participate in this meeting led by the Pentagon to discuss NATO affairs. The report quoted six diplomats familiar with the matter as saying that the meeting planned to be held in Poland was led by Elbridge Colby, the Pentagon's undersecretary for policy affairs, and was essentially a working meeting focusing on the future of NATO. However, many of the uninvited countries - such as Britain, France and the Baltic states - not only have huge defense spending but also play key roles within NATO, leaving diplomats from these countries puzzled by their exclusion. They questioned whether the U.S. move was intended to favor certain countries and could further divide an alliance already struggling due to tensions with Russia and depleted weapons stockpiles. The White House did not respond to a request for comment, and the Pentagon declined to comment. (Global Network)