President Donald Trump is set to meet with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte to discuss a possible U.S. withdrawal from the alliance. “I think the president will discuss it with Secretary General Rutte in a couple of hours,” Caroline Livitt said Wednesday, April 8, in Washington. She said Trump wants to have a “very open and honest conversation” with Rutte, dw.com writes.
Livitt repeated Trump’s accusation that allies have abandoned the U.S. in the war with Iran. NATO has “turned its back on the United States in the last six weeks,” she said. NATO has “failed” the test, she said. Trump has repeatedly expressed his frustration that European allies are unwilling to help the U.S. reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Earlier, Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced their intention to review USA membership in NATO after the end of the war with Iran. Rutte later expressed understanding for the position of both sides. He is considered a mediator between Trump and the rest of the North Atlantic Alliance.
According to a NATO spokesman, during the White House talks, Rutte and Trump also intend to discuss the “current security situation,” “including in the context of Iran and Russia’s ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine.” Another topic on the agenda will reportedly be deepening transatlantic cooperation in the defense industry.
Punishing Allies
For now, the US president plans to punish NATO allies for their lack of support for the Iran operation.
Donald Trump is considering a plan to punish some NATO member states that, in his opinion, did not provide adequate support for the U.S.-Israeli operation against Iran, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing administration officials.
The sources said the plan, among other things, involves withdrawing U.S. troops from such states and stationing them in countries that have been more supportive of the U.S. campaign in Iran. Washington, for example, may close some military bases in Spain or Germany.
The move differs from Trump’s recent threats to pull the states out of the alliance completely, which by law he cannot do without congressional approval, the newspaper notes.
WSJ recalls that Trump has repeatedly called NATO a “paper tiger” that is useless in hard times.
“He has been frustrated by the reluctance of NATO and other allies to help throughout Operation Epic Fury, even though his efforts to destroy the threat from Iran are benefiting them,” White House deputy press secretary Anne Kelly said the day before. “As he said, the United States will remember that,” she emphasized.
