Trump: The United States will only protect its allies who pay their bills!

US President Donald Trump announced that the United States will only protect NATO allies that allocate a reasonable percentage of their GDP to defense spending.

Trump said, “If you’re not planning to pay your share, we’re not going to protect you… If you’re not willing to pay your obligations, we’re not going to protect you”.

Trump indicated that NATO allies might not provide the necessary support to the United States in the event of an attack, adding, “Do you think they’ll come to protect us? They should, but I’m not sure”.

Last week, US administration sources indicated that Trump might refuse to defend a NATO partner country if it didn’t fully commit to paying its share of defense spending.

NBC News quoted three current and former US officials, along with a member of Congress, as saying that Trump is considering making major changes to US participation in NATO.

It’s worth noting that tensions in relations between Europe and Washington began with Trump’s inauguration.

The United States is seeking to have EU countries adopt their own policies and assume greater responsibility, including supporting Ukraine’s security.

The US president is also dissatisfied with the level of defense spending by European NATO members, demanding that this spending be increased to 5% of their GDP.

The NATO summit in Wales, held in September 2014, set a defense spending target of 2% of member states’ GDP, in light of what was considered a “Russian threat” following Russia’s annexation of Crimea.

In July 2023, it was agreed at the Vilnius Summit that 2% would be the minimum defense spending target for NATO member states.