Trump casts doubt on NATO solidarity, despite it aiding the US after Sept. 11

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

Trump casts doubt on NATO solidarity, despite it aiding the US after Sept. 11

By MICHELLE L. PRICE
Updated 7:15 PM EST, March 6, 2025

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Thursday expressed uncertainty that NATO would come to the United States’ defense if the country were attacked, though the alliance did just that after Sept. 11 — the only time in its history that the defense guarantee has been invoked.

Trump also suggested that the U.S. might abandon its commitments to the alliance if member countries don’t meet defense spending targets, a day after his pick for NATO ambassador assured senators that the administration’s commitment to the military alliance was “ironclad.”

Trump’s comments denigrating NATO, which was formed to counter Soviet aggression during the Cold War, are largely in line with his yearslong criticism of the alliance, which he has accused of not paying its fair share toward the cost of defense. But they come at a time of heightened concern in the Western world over Trump’s cozy relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has long seen NATO as a threat, and as the U.S. president seeks to pressure Ukraine into agreeing to a peace deal with the country that invaded it three years ago.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth sent the alliance into upheaval last month when he said in a speech that the U.S. would not participate in any peacekeeping force in Ukraine, which is not a NATO member, and would not defend any country that participated in it if attacked by Russia.

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Read more: https://apnews.com/article/trump-nato-ukraine-c5fef35ca057a31a61cba6f611393999

[Eugene]

1. Trump casts doubt on NATO security agreement: 'If they don't pay, I'm not going to defend them'

Source: Politico

Trump casts doubt on NATO security agreement: ‘If they don’t pay, I’m not going to defend them’

The president signaled that he would consider abandoning a key part of the NATO security pact if members don’t spend more on defense.

By Giselle Ruhiyyih Ewing

03/06/2025 06:20 PM EST

Updated: 03/06/2025 07:21 PM EST

President Donald Trump cast doubt Thursday on a core tenet of the NATO security alliance — that an attack on one member is an attack on all and must draw a response.

Trump, speaking to reporters during a bill signing in the Oval Office, said he would reconsider the U.S. commitment to the security pact if members in the 32-nation alliance do not increase defense spending as he has repeatedly demanded.

“Well, I think it’s common sense,” Trump said. “If they don’t pay, I’m not going to defend them.”

His remarks appeared to be an escalation of the anti-NATO rhetoric that was a feature of Trump’s first term and helped inspire a law passed in 2023 and signed by President Joe Biden that requires either two-thirds Senate approval or an act of Congress for the U.S. to exit the alliance.

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Read more: https://www.politico.com/news/2025/03/06/trump-nato-security-agreement-00216984