President Joe Biden on Sunday took aim at his predecessor Donald Trump's recent comments about NATO, condemning the former president's assertion that Russia should be able to do "whatever the hell they want" to alliance members who don't meet their defense spending targets as "appalling and dangerous."
Trump raised eyebrows during a rally in South Carolina on Saturday, when he recalled how as president he told an unidentified NATO member that he would “encourage” Russia to do as it wishes in cases of NATO allies who are “delinquent.”
"You didn’t pay? You’re delinquent?’” Trump recounted saying. “‘No I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You gotta pay. You gotta pay your bills.’”
Trump's comments sparked applause and cheers from the crowd in Conway, South Carolina.
In a statement released by his reelection campaign, Biden hailed the efforts his administration has taken to bolster the treaty organization in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
"Under my administration, the United States of America has stood shoulder to shoulder with our allies to build a NATO alliance that is bigger and stronger than ever and stands in defense of democracy against Vladimir Putin’s authoritarian aggression," the Democratic president said. "America’s leadership on the world stage and support for our allies is critical to keeping the American people safe here at home."
"If my opponent, Donald Trump, is able to regain power, he is making it clear as day that he will abandon our NATO allies if Russia attacks and allow Russia to 'do whatever the hell they want' with them," Biden continued. "Serving as Commander-in-Chief is the ultimate responsibility and one that should weigh heavily on the individuals that hold this office."
"Donald Trump’s admission that he intends to give Putin a greenlight for more war and violence, to continue his brutal assault against a free Ukraine, and to expand his aggression to the people of Poland and the Baltic States are appalling and dangerous. Sadly, they are also predictable coming from a man who is promising to rule as a dictator like the ones he praises on day one if he returns to the oval office."
Trump's comments have been widely denounced by individuals on both sides of the aise, as well as members of the international community. Trump's only major remaining opponent for the Republican presidential nomination, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, who served in his administration, condemned his remarks in an interview on CBS' "Face the Nation" on Sunday.
"Don’t take the side of a thug who kills his opponents," Haley said. "Don’t take the side of someone who has gone in and invaded a country, and half a million people have died or been wounded because of Putin. Don’t take the side of someone who continues to lie."
"I dealt with Russia every day," she continued. "The last thing we ever want to do is side with Russia."
The White House called Trump's remarks "appalling and unhinged."
“Thanks to President Biden’s experienced leadership, NATO is now the largest and most vital it has ever been,” said White House spokesperson Andrew Bates in a statement. “Encouraging invasions of our closest allies by murderous regimes is appalling and unhinged — and it endangers American national security, global stability, and our economy at home.”
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said that "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."
Trump’s remarks caused deep concern in Poland, a country in central Europe that has been under Russian control more often than not since the end of the 18th century. Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said “no election campaign is an excuse for playing with the security of the alliance.”
“We have a hot war at our border," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Sunday, voicing concerns about whether the United States will show “full solidarity with other NATO countries in this confrontation that promises to last for a long time with Russia.”
“We must realize that the EU cannot be an economic and civilizational giant and a dwarf when it comes to defense, because the world has changed," Tusk said.
German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung wrote in an editorial that “if Trump will become U.S. president again, such statements will increase the risk of Putin expanding his war. Europeans can only do one thing to counter this: finally invest in their military security in line with the seriousness of the situation.”
Trump's comments were of particular concern to NATO's front-line countries, like Poland and the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, which were either under the control of Moscow or fully incorporated into the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Fears there run especially high given Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
While in office, Trump had already threatened not to come to the aid of any country under attack that he considered owed NATO and the U.S. and was not spending enough on defense. His stance destabilized the alliance, particularly countries with borders close to Russia.
Under NATO’s mutual defense clause, Article 5 of its founding treaty, all allies commit help of any member who comes under attack. Article 5 has only ever been activated once – by the U.S. in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
After Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in 2014, NATO leaders agreed to halt the defense spending cuts made after the end of the Cold War and start moving toward spending 2% of gross domestic product on their military budgets. No country is in debt to another, or to NATO.
NATO has undertaken its biggest military buildup since the Cold War since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.