A Trump 2.0 White House term would reportedly launch a wrecking ball into U.S. foreign policy — altering or even doing away altogether with decades long foreign policy mainstays. That purported plan includes a radical NATO makeover and an expedited accord to end the Russia-Ukraine war.
Bloomberg News reported that former President Donald Trump is entertaining stripping the forged ties with some NATO countries, specifically establishing a two-tiered NATO alliance model.
It would mean that the charter's Article 5 — which obligates all members in the alliance to defend any member under siege — would have to pony up and meet their defense-spending benchmarks, according to Bloomberg's cited sources.
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Others in Trump's ear are said to be pushing for bulkier tariffs on any of the countries slacking off on their 2% suggested contribution to defense spending. Countries are encouraged to contribute to their own militaries as part of a collective effort based on a formula that factors in their own GDP.
Speaking at a Saturday rally in Conway, South Carolina, Trump recounted a story about an anonymous NATO member asking if he would withhold U.S. support if their country didn't pay their 2% to NATO.
Trump said he would cheer on Russia to attack a NATO ally.
“You didn’t pay? You’re delinquent?" Trump claimed he said. "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."
The pay-to-stay-safe sentiment isn't being sounded by Trump alone.
"Where I come from, alliances matter," Keith Kellogg, a retired lieutenant general and onetime chief of staff of the former president's National Security Council, told Reuters. "But if you're going to be part of an alliance, contribute to the alliance, be part of the alliance."
Also, should the president defeat former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley and then pull off a second bid against incumbent President Joe Biden — he would reportedly move to accelerate an end to the battle raging between Ukraine and Russia — specifically a sit-down with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Russian President Vladimir Putin to hash out a potential peace deal.
