U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to hold a news conference after participating in the NATO Summit in Brussels, Belgium July 12, 2018. REUTERS/Reinhard Krause
Robin Emmott, Reuters: Trump's portrayal of NATO in crisis carries risks for alliance
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Donald Trump’s portrayal of NATO as an alliance in crisis has raised concern that the U.S. president’s nagging criticism might erode U.S. public support and risk America’s commitment to collective defense, diplomats said.
Allies emerged confused and shaken from a two-day NATO summit in which Trump harangued them over perceived under- spending on defense, accused Germany of being a prisoner to Russian energy and prompted an emergency meeting of leaders trying to contain the fallout from the unexpected tirade at one session.
NATO diplomats complained that the drama around Trump’s forthright comments had overshadowed big decisions that the allies took in areas from defense spending to new weapons and strategies to address Russia’s efforts to destabilize the West through cyber and covert attacks.
“There was a gap between the Trumpian-generated idea that there is some kind of crisis and the reality that this was one of the most substantial summits for years,” one senior NATO diplomatic source told Reuters.
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WNU Editor: It is an alliance that was originally put together to counter the Soviet threat during the Cold War. That was then .... today the threat is long gone, and what we now have is an organization that is made up of member states who say one thing on the need to work together, but act completely different when their own personal interests are at stake. Germany's claim that Russia is a threat while signing billions in energy deals with them is just one example of this hypocricy .... I can name scores of others. So yes .... the alliance is in crisis, and it has nothing to do with President Trump. He is just stating the obvious.
