Putin Wants It All. NATO Stands in His Way

Debra Saunders on Feb 14, 2024

"For some reason, Trump chose to treat NATO like a freeloader, even though the alliance is sending NATO troops to Iraq and likely will increase troop levels in Afghanistan," I wrote for the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

This latest Trump tidbit began during a weekend rally in South Carolina. Trump shared his version of a conversation he held with the unnamed leader of a "big" NATO nation. The leader asked Trump if the U.S. would protect NATO countries that didn't pay their "bills." ("Bills" is Trump's shorthand for NATO members' pledge to spend at least 2% of their GDP on defense. Most NATO countries have fallen short of that goal.)

Trump said that he told the leader, "No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want."

And here I am writing about it.

Sure, Trump's criticism of NATO resonates with voters who are sick of Washington's big spending, lack of accountability and failure to pay for emergency expenditures. But he's singing Putin's song.

Who does it hurt? NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg responded appropriately. "Any attack on NATO will be met with a united and forceful response. Any suggestion that allies will not defend each other undermines all of our security, including that of the U.S., and puts American and European soldiers at increased risk."

And who does it help? The thug who annexed Crimea in 2014 and invaded Ukraine in 2022.

This is not a game.

Contact Review-Journal Washington columnist Debra J. Saunders at dsaunders@reviewjournal.com. Follow @debrajsaunders on X.

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