US President Donald Trump praised Greece's long economic recovery Tuesday, as he hosted Alexis Tsipras, the country's leftist prime minister, at the White House.

The unlikely pair announced a $2.4 billion deal to upgrade Greece's fleet of F-16 fighter jets and waxed lyrical about common values derived from Socrates and Plato.

"Greece has gone through a lot over the last number of years, but they are doing a terrific job of coming back," Trump said.

"And they will be back. We're working with them on many different things."

The Greek economy is expected to grow 2.4 percent in 2018, after a series of multi-billion dollar bailouts since 2010.

Now Tsipras -- with his trademark open collar -- made the case for US investors to come to Greece.

Athens hopes to return to international bond markets in August 2018, a symbolic end to a decade of severe economic hardship.

Trump and Tsipras later appeared in the Rose Garden for a sun-kissed joint press conference.

The 43-year-old began the event being pestered by a wasp. It did not get much more comfortable after that.

Asked why he once referred to the prospect of a Trump presidency as "evil," Tsipras spoke only about how good the pair's meeting was.

"I wish I knew that before my speech," Trump remarked dryly.

The pair did however connect while discussing an old airport in Athens, which Trump had been interested in investing in as a businessman.

Trump also commended Greece for being one of the few NATO countries to spend more than two percent of GDP on defense, a key demand he has made of allies.

Source: AFP