Trump: "NATO Threats Are Negotiation Tactics... Won't Withdraw If Europe Pays Its Share"

Former U.S. President Donald Trump stated that if NATO's European member countries properly pay their defense costs, he would not withdraw from the alliance if re-elected. This marks a kind of 'tone' adjustment following the controversy sparked by his earlier remarks about encouraging Russia to attack allies that do not share defense costs.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

In an interview with the British TV channel 'GB News' released on the 19th (local time), Trump was asked, "If NATO's European member countries start playing fair, will the U.S. remain in NATO?" He replied, "Yes. 100%." Playing fair means meeting the self-imposed requirement of spending at least 2% of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on defense budgets. Trump has publicly criticized this as free-riding on security.

Regarding his statement last month about encouraging Russia's invasion of allies who do not share defense costs, he described it as "a kind of negotiation." He added, "Why should we protect wealthy countries, and why should the U.S. pay most of NATO's defense costs?" He argued, "The U.S. should pay its fair share, but not the fair share of all other countries."

At the time, his NATO-related remarks caused a major stir as they could shake the global economy and security, leading to widespread speculation that the U.S. might withdraw from NATO if he were re-elected. In response, Trump emphasized in this interview that his intention was not to withdraw from NATO or remove the security umbrella, but to induce member countries to increase their defense spending, which is interpreted as a form of damage control. Last year, the U.S. Congress passed a law preventing the president from unilaterally withdrawing from NATO without a two-thirds Senate approval or a congressional bill.

Politico noted, "During most of his first term, former President Trump spent his time criticizing the Atlantic alliance, especially Germany, to increase defense spending," and emphasized that "although he repeatedly threatened to withdraw from NATO at the time, the withdrawal never happened," highlighting that the threat was for negotiation purposes. According to NATO, about two-thirds of the current 32 member countries meet the requirement of spending at least 2% of GDP on defense.