Former US President Donald Trump has indicated that he does not want to protect NATO allies from a possible invasion by Russia. In a speech at a campaign rally in South Carolina, Trump spoke of a meeting during his term as US president with leading representatives of the US NATO tells, among other things the New York Times and CNN report. Accordingly, Trump recounted how he had criticized countries that did not pay their NATO contributions: He said that he would encourage Russia to “do whatever the hell they want” with countries that did not pay their NATO contributions .
The spokesman for the White House in Washington, DC, Andrew Bates, clearly criticized Trump’s statements. “Encouraging invasions of our closest allies by murderous regimes is appalling and disturbing – and it endangers U.S. national security, global security and the stability of our domestic economy.”
Trump is the leading Republican candidate
At the beginning of January, EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton reported similar statements from Trump during a panel discussion in the EU Parliament.
In Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, NATO has stipulated that the allies regard an armed attack against one or more of them as an attack against all of them. The member countries therefore undertake to support each other.
Trump is currently the leading Republican candidate in the party’s internal race for the party’s presidential nomination in November’s election. In a campaign rally he said that as president he would be able to end the war within 24 hours – which was often interpreted as an indication that he would be in agreement of Russia President Vladimir Putin could agree on a solution in Russia’s favor without taking Ukraine and the European NATO countries into account.
There is also concern that if Putin wins over Ukraine, he could attack other neighboring countries such as NATO members Poland or Latvia.
Former US President Donald Trump has indicated that he does not want to protect NATO allies from a possible invasion by Russia. In a speech at a campaign rally in South Carolina, Trump spoke of a meeting during his term as US president with leading representatives of the US NATO tells, among other things the New York Times and CNN report. Accordingly, Trump recounted how he had criticized countries that did not pay their NATO contributions: He said that he would encourage Russia to “do whatever the hell they want” with countries that did not pay their NATO contributions .