During his presidency, Donald Trump threatened the leaders of NATO countries that in the event of Russian attack, he would not protect those members of the Alliance who owed payments to the organization. Moreover, he even threatened that, on the contrary, he would encourage Russia to commit aggression against “debtors.”
Donald Trump himself spoke about this during a speech on Saturday, February 10, in South Carolina. His words are quoted by The New York Times.
Trump has not made it clear whether he ever intends to follow through on such threat or what it would mean for the alliance, but his comment, which he made to demonstrate his "negotiating skills," is likely to cause concern among NATO members who are already very nervous about the prospect of Trump returning to the presidency of the United States.
Some European officials and foreign policy experts have said they are concerned that Russia could break into a NATO country after winning the war with Ukraine, fears they say are heightened by Trump’s possible election victory in the fall of 2024. .
Trump has previously said that supporting NATO is an excessive burden for the United States and that the Alliance is draining US financial and military resources. And his campaign website says his country should reconsider the purpose of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
During the current election campaign, Trump recalled how during his presidency, he privately told NATO leaders that the United States would not protect them from Russian attack if they were in debt. And he boasted that allegedly after he expressed this threat, “hundreds of billions of dollars flowed” into NATO.
During his speech on Saturday in South Carolina, Trump recalled a conversation with a European leader who asked whether the United States would defend his country if it were attacked by Russia if the country owed a debt to NATO.
"No, I wouldn’t defend you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You have to pay your bills," Donald Trump quoted himself.
The publication noted that White House spokesman Andrew Bates called Trump’s comments "terrible and senseless."