Former U.S. president Donald Trump pictured throughout a assembly with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg at Winfield House, London on Dec. 3, 2019.
NICHOLAS KAMM | AFP | Getty Images
Former U.S. head of state and presidential candidate Donald Trump stoked the ire of U.S. lawmakers and worldwide leaders, after remarking he wouldn’t shield NATO international locations from Russian assaults in the event that they lag on their membership funds.
Speaking at a rally in South Carolina on Saturday, Trump stated that, as president, he warned NATO allies that he “would encourage” Russia “to do whatever the hell they want” to a member nation that did not meet its protection spending pointers.
Trump, who has a lengthy historical past of criticizing the transatlantic army alliance, recounted a time when an unspecified president of a NATO member challenged him on his menace to not defend them from a potential Russian invasion in the event that they failed to satisfy NATO’s goal of spending no less than 2% of their finances on the army.
“You didn’t pay, you’re delinquent … No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You got to pay. You got to pay your bills,” Trump stated.
The U.S. has traditionally had the most important variety of army personnel out of all NATO international locations, counting 1.35 million troops in 2023, according to Statista.
Trump has been accused of entertaining shut ties with Russia throughout his first presidential mandate. The Kremlin declined to deal with Trump’s remarks.
“I am still [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s press secretary, but not Trump’s,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov advised reporters, in line with Reuters.
Top Western officers, as nicely as each Democratic and Republican lawmakers, sharply criticized Trump’s comments. U.S. President Joe Biden, who has additionally declared intentions to run for a second presidential mandate, described Trump’s remarks as “appalling and dangerous.”
“Sadly, they are also predictable coming from a man who is promising to rule as a dictator like the ones he praises on day one if he returns to the oval office,” Biden stated Sunday in a assertion.
Trump is vying to clinch Republican backing for his presidential bid on the polls later this 12 months, going through off former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley.
In an interview with CBS, Haley said Sunday that “the last thing we ever want to do is side with Russia.”
She added that the NATO alliance “allows us to prevent war.”
Former Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie additionally criticized Trump’s comments, saying in an interview with NBC News on Sunday that “this is why I’ve been saying for a long time that he’s unfit to be president of the United States.”
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan (not seen) maintain a joint press convention after the North Atlantic Council assembly held on the NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium on February 7, 2024.
Dursun Aydemir | Anadolu | Getty Images
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stated that NATO stands “ready and able” to defend all allies and any assault could be met with a “united and forceful” response.
“Any suggestion that allies will not defend each other undermines all of our security, including that of the US, and puts American and European soldiers at increased risk,” Stoltenberg stated in a assertion.
“I expect that regardless of who wins the presidential election the US will remain a strong and committed NATO Ally,” he added.
NATO’s spending goal
NATO’s 31 members, which embrace the U.S., Canada, France, Italy, Turkey and the U.Okay., agreed in July final 12 months to spend no less than 2% of their gross home product on protection, firming up a earlier purpose.
A report launched by NATO final 12 months showed solely 11 of the then-30 member alliance have been spending 2% of GDP or extra on protection. The protection spending goal just isn’t a requirement and lots of international locations have sought to ramp up their army spending since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
NATO’s so-called Article 5 mutual protection clause implies that an assault towards one NATO member is taken into account an assault towards all allies.
The European Union’s overseas coverage chief Josep Borrell stated Monday that NATO can’t be an “a la carte” army alliance depending on the impulses of the U.S. political management.
“NATO cannot be an ‘a la carte’ military alliance … depending on the humor of the president of the U.S.,” Borrell stated when requested to answer Trump’s comments, Reuters reported.
Germany’s Foreign Office on Sunday posted “One for all and all for one” on its English language X social media account, supported by the hashtag “#StrongerTogether.”
Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said Sunday through X that NATO’s motto of “‘one for all, all for one’ is a concrete commitment.”
“Undermining the credibility of allied countries means weakening the entire North Atlantic Treaty Organization. No election campaign is an excuse for playing with the security of the Alliance,” he added.