On the opening day of the conference the President of the United States, Donald Trump, caused controversy by asserting that Germany is beholden to Russia over its involvement in the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline project aimed at doubling energy imports from Russia.[7] This was the first time he addressed the leaders since the inauguration ceremony of the new NATO Headquarters, at which he stressed a similar point. German ChancellorAngela Merkel reacted defensively to Trump's comments and tried to deflect them with: "I am very happy that today we are united in freedom, the Federal Republic of Germany. Because of that we can say that we can make our independent policies and make independent decisions."[8]
For the first time a RF Drone Detection System was used (a white dome seen at the right rooftop of the summit picture).
Aftermath
The New York Times reported on 9 August 2018 that Trump's senior national security advisors, concerned that Trump might disrupt the summit as he did by refusing to sign the communiqué at the June G7 summit, scrambled to secure a formal policy agreement during the weeks before the summit.[16]