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BRUSSELS, May 24-- On Thursday, fresh from a tour in the Middle East, U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to arrive in Brussels to meet with another, less controversial Donald -- Donald Tusk, president of the European Council, and Jean-Claude Juncker, president of the European Commission. It will be the first time Trump meet with the heads of EU institutions. After the meeting, he is set to attend a NATO summit Thursday afternoon. Trump had once called Brussels a "hellhole," cheered for Brexit, and dismissed NATO as "obsolete" -- all of which raised questions in Europe about his commitment to transatlantic alliances. The notion that the EU may not be able to rely on the cooperation of the U.S. administration is, for some, quickly looking like a new reality. Trump's appointment of several controversial figures to his cabinet highlights this concern. Several European leaders also rejected Trump's anti-Muslim and much-criticized travel ban amid concern over his commitment to transatlantic values. The ban, on refugees and citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries, saw European capitals scramble to determine how it would affect their dual nationality citizens. Despite such pessimism, there are, however, hopes that Trump's visit to Brussels may pave the way for improved EU-U.S. relations in the coming weeks and months. Senior EU figures are hoping that the visit and face-to-face meetings could be a good opportunity to take the first, tentative steps to heal a rift in relations which, for some, reached a nadir when Washington failed to sign the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, the landmark transatlantic trade deal. | 
