Trump’s rise to power and the collapse of NATO: Experts evaluated the possible consequences of the US elections – NYT

On December 9, New York Times experts analyzed Donald Trump’s ability to dismantle NATO if he wins the US presidential election in the fall of 2024. They explained that the president could do this on his own, without asking Congress. Threats to the North Atlantic Alliance are discussed in an article on the NYT portal.

Important

Experts reminded Donald Trump’s statements during his previous term as US President. He then made comments specifically to the member states of the Alliance: he argued that they were indebted for the maintenance of NATO troops. Moreover, the politician once said that he would consider whether to defend these countries in the event of an attack from the outside. He also said that perhaps he would wait until he paid off his debts first.

The article states that there is no clear information about what plans Trump and his team from the Republican Party have regarding NATO. There’s a hint on the election website that they’re going to do something. But it doesn’t detail what exactly happened.

“We must complete the process we started under my administration by fundamentally re-evaluating NATO’s purpose and mission.”

There is also the threat that Trump will try to make a truly radical decision. “There is great fear in Europe that a Trump second presidency will lead to a de facto withdrawal of the United States from NATO,” said James G. Stavridis, former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO (2009-2013).

Meanwhile, experts told The New York Times that US law stipulates that Congress must approve entry into the Alliance. However, nowhere is it stated what the procedure for leaving this organization is.

The authors of the publication wrote that if Donald Trump wants to withdraw the USA from NATO, he can sign a decree to this effect. Serious lawsuits will be filed against this decision, Congress will object, but the legal process will take some time.

To prevent a Republican representative from making such a unilateral decision, Congress voted to support the National Defense Authorization Act. If this law is passed, US membership in NATO will be preserved. But this will not solve all problems.

“The law says that the president does not have the right to withdraw the United States from NATO without the approval of Congress. However, the question of whether the Constitution allows the president’s hands to be tied in this way is also controversial,” the authors of the article said. .

NYT reminded that Trump’s rhetoric so far has focused only on the internal interests of the USA.

“My top priority has always been and always will be America First—to protect our own country, our own borders, our own values, and our own people, including their jobs and prosperity,” he said in campaign statements. .

US elections – details

Remember that the US presidential elections will be held in the fall of 2024. A year before the election, Donald Trump has 4% more supporters than incumbent President Joe Biden, according to the latest polls of Americans.

Members of Donald Trump’s party blocked the allocation of funds for aid to Ukraine several times in a row. We are talking about 61 billion dollars that should be allocated to weapons and budget support. The last vote took place on December 6: Then Biden announced that it was possible for the American army to participate in conflicts in Europe, but the senators did not listen to him.

We remind you that The Hill has published an updated analysis of the Russia-Ukraine war. We came to the conclusion that they will no longer wait for Ukraine’s victory in 2025 and will turn to plan B.