Former United States President Donald Trump has renewed his criticism of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), questioning the alliance’s commitment to supporting the United States during military operations and future crises.
Speaking in an interview with Fox News on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Trump claimed that troops from NATO member states played a limited role in the U.S.-led campaign against the Taliban in Afghanistan. He said allied forces were positioned away from the front lines and expressed doubts about whether the alliance would provide full backing to the United States if called upon.
Trump argued that while NATO countries contributed forces to Afghanistan, their involvement did not reflect equal burden-sharing. He added that the United States has historically provided extensive support to Europe and other partners, stating that alliance obligations should operate on a reciprocal basis.
Following the interview, Trump reiterated his criticism in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social. In the post, he suggested that the United States could have tested NATO’s collective defense clause, Article 5, by seeking alliance assistance to address security challenges along the U.S. southern border. He argued that such support could have allowed U.S. border personnel to be reassigned to other duties.
The remarks drew criticism from NATO allies, particularly the United Kingdom, which suffered one of the highest troop losses among coalition partners in Afghanistan after the United States. UK officials and lawmakers expressed concern over Trump’s characterization of allied contributions.
Dame Emily Thornberry, chair of the UK House of Commons Foreign Affairs Select Committee, described Trump’s comments in an interview with the BBC as deeply offensive to the families of service members who died in the Afghanistan conflict. She said the remarks went beyond a simple misstatement and undermined the sacrifices made by allied forces.
