At a rally in Conway, South Carolina, Donald Trump said he would not hesitate to “encourage” Russia to attack NATO countries that do not respect their financial commitments, dusting off his warhorse when he was President against the countries reluctant to increase their contribution to defense to two percent of their GDP. An outburst that the White House describes as “frightening and crazy”. The Republican primaries will be held in South Carolina on the 24th of this month.
Trump said that, in a NATO meeting, he had confided to another head of state that the United States, under his leadership, would not defend any country considered “delinquent”. “The president of a great country stood up and said, 'Well, if we don't pay, and if we're attacked by Russia, who's going to protect us?'” Trump responded: “You don't pay, you're a criminal. Nobody would protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever they want. You have to pay, You have to pay your bills.”
“Encouraging the invasion of our closest allies by murderous regimes is appalling and insane and harms our national security, global stability and our economy,” said White House spokesman Andrew Bates. By 2022, seven Allied countries (now 31) spent at least two percent of their GDP on defense. There were only three in 2014.
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