Trump Urges Russia to Target NATO Members with Payment Delays

Donald Trump, aspiring for the White House again, has controversially stated he would “encourage” Russia to target NATO members failing to fulfill their financial commitments. This stance marks his most radical criticism yet of the military alliance, which he has frequently questioned.

Amid discussions in the U.S. Congress regarding additional aid for Ukraine on the eve of the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion, Trump has argued against the U.S.’s obligation to defend NATO’s other 29 members, citing financial delinquency.

At a South Carolina campaign event, Trump recounted a hypothetical dialogue with a NATO country’s leader, suggesting he would not defend a country against a Russian attack if it had not met its financial obligations to NATO.

This comes as Senate Republicans recently voted down a bipartisan proposal that would have provided new funding for Ukraine and aid for Israel, alongside measures addressing the U.S.-Mexico border crisis.

The White House condemned Trump’s remarks, with spokesperson Andrew Bates criticizing Trump’s approach as dangerous and reaffirming President Joe Biden’s commitment to strengthening international alliances.

Trump also hailed the Senate bill’s failure, attributing it to his influence over the Republican Party and promising a large-scale deportation operation should he be re-elected. He celebrated this as a victory against what he termed as Biden’s “open borders bill.”

Furthermore, Trump took aim at Nikki Haley, his former UN ambassador and current Republican nomination rival, questioning the absence of her husband, who is deployed in Djibouti, from her campaign. Haley responded by highlighting her husband’s military service and criticizing Trump’s understanding of military family sacrifices. Her husband indirectly criticized Trump’s leadership with a social media post comparing human and animal leadership.

The Senate is now considering a $95 billion foreign aid package, focusing on support for Israel, Taiwan, and Ukraine, separate from border issues. This package aims to assist Ukraine’s ongoing conflict and other strategic allies without entangling aid with domestic policy disputes.