Donald Trump declared that if he is re-elected as president he will “encourage” Russia to “do whatever the hell they want” to any NATO member that does not pay enough for defense.
Speaking Saturday at a rally in Conway, South Carolina, the former president recalled that a leader of a “big country” asked if the US might come to their aid if they did not pay their fair share in defense spending within NATO and had come under attack from Moscow.
“I said: ‘You didn’t pay? You’re delinquent?’ … ‘No I would not protect you, in fact, I would encourage them to do whatever they want. You gotta pay. You gotta pay your bills,'” Trump said.
NATO countries are committed to defending any members of the bloc that come under attack, though countries do not pay NATO directly, prompting the White House to admonish the ex-president’s remarks.
In a statement, White House spokesperson Andrew Bates called the commentary “appalling and unhinged.”
Donald Trump said that, as president, he warned NATO allies that he “would encourage” Russia “to do whatever the hell they want” during a rally in South Carolina on Saturday. Getty Images
US President Joe Biden is surrounded Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky and leaders of NATO countries including British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on July 12, 2023. AP“Encouraging invasions of our closest allies by murderous regimes is appalling and unhinged – and it endangers American national security, global stability, and our economy at home,” Bates said.
Trump, the Republican front-runner in the 2024 presidential election, has long questioned the value of NATO, which he sees as an undue financial burden on the US and something he even threatened to abandon during his 2016 campaign.
The former president has also taken issue with the amount of money the US has sent to Ukraine — which is not a NATO country — amid its ongoing war with Russia. Many took to social media to bash Trump’s support of Russia — and efforts to abandon NATO — deemed Trump’s words “crazy.”
Former President Donald Trump meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the G20 Summit in Germany on July 7, 2017. AP“Donald Trump says a lot of crazy things and has made it clear that democracy is an obstacle to his pursuit of power,” wrote New York Democratic Rep. Daniel Goldman. “But his declaration that he would abandon NATO and support Vladimir Putin –who is aligned with China and Iran — is a flashing red light.” Stanford University Professor of Political Science Michael McFaul wrote “This is crazy.” “And 8 years later, Trump shows that he STILL doesn’t understand how NATO works! It’s not a protection racket. They don’t pay us to protect them. Geez.”
Earlier Saturday, Trump called for the end of foreign aid “WITHOUT “STRINGS” ATTACHED,” arguing that the US should make changes to the way it provides money to its allies overseas.
“FROM THIS POINT FORWARD, ARE YOU LISTENING US SENATE(?), NO MONEY IN THE FORM OF FOREIGN AID SHOULD BE GIVEN TO ANY COUNTRY UNLESS IT IS DONE AS A LOAN, NOT JUST A GIVEAWAY,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social in all-caps.
Former President Donald Trump and then British Prime Minister Boris Johnson meet at the United Nations General Assembly on Sept. 24, 2019. AP
Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron hold hands during a ceremony at the White House on April 24, 2018. APTrump added that money could be loaned “ON EXTRAORDINARILY GOOD TERMS,” with no interest and no date for repayment.
But noted that, “IF THE COUNTRY WE ARE HELPING EVER TURNS AGAINST US, OR STRIKES IT RICH SOMETIME IN THE FUTURE, THE LOAN WILL BE PAID OFF AND THE MONEY RETURNED TO THE UNITED STATES.”
NATO reported in 2022 that seven of 31 members were meeting their financial obligations, an increase from three in 2014.
Trump has often tried to take credit for the uptick, including on Saturday when he bragged that as a result of his threats, “hundreds of billions of dollars came into NATO,” even though countries do not pay NATO directly.
