President Donald Trump on Thursday said Europeans nations that want protection without paying their share might find out to their cost that they made a bad choice.
Trump has said nations of NATO, founded after World War II to contain the expansion of the then-Soviet Union by providing mutual defense for its members, should not expect to be rescued from their folly.
“Well, I think it’s common sense, right?” Trump said in a video posted to X after being asked about whether he would make it a policy not to protect NATO members that do not pay their fair share.
“If they don’t pay, I’m not going to defend them. No, I’m not going to defend them. I got into a lot of heat when I said that. They said, ‘Oh no, he’s violating NATO,’” Trump said.
🚨BREAKING: Trump announces The United States WILL NOT defend any countries who are not paying NATO dues. pic.twitter.com/cMWrh54sJp
— Derrick Evans (@DerrickEvans4WV) March 7, 2025
“You know the biggest problem I have with NATO? I really, I mean, I know the guys very well. They’re friends of mine. But if the United States was in trouble, and we called them, we said, ‘We got a problem, France. We got a problem, couple of others I won’t mention.’ Do you think they’re going to come and protect us? They’re supposed to. I’m not so sure.”
Reuters reported that Trump noted many nations increased spending after Trump spent his first term demanding they do so, “even now, it’s not enough. They should be paying more.”
“I view NATO as potentially good, but you’ve got to get, you’ve got to get some good thinking in NATO. It’s very unfair, what’s been happening,” Trump said. according to Time.
Should the U.S. withdraw from NATO entirely?
“Until I came along, we were paying close to 100 percent of NATO. So think of it, we’re paying 100 percent of their military, and they’re screwing us on trade.”
NATO members are each expected to spend 2 percent of their gross domestic product on defense, but Trump has pushed for that target to be increased to 5 percent, according to The Hill.
A chart posted by the Associated Press showed that the U.S. is paying 3.38 percent of the GDP on defense spending, with Poland spending more than any other NATO member at just over 4 percent.
Great Britain spends 2.33 percent of its GDP on defense; Germany spends 2.12 percent; and France spends 2.06 percent, the chart said.
Canada, Portugal, Spain, Slovenia, Italy, Croatia, Belgium and Luxembourg were under the 2 percent mark, according to the chart.
“I know some may have concerns about NATO’s future,” NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said on Thursday, Reuters noted.
“So let me be clear, the Transatlantic relationship and the Transatlantic partnership remains the bedrock of our Alliance. President Trump has made clear the commitment of the U.S. and his commitment personally to NATO, and it has also made clear the expectation that we in Europe must do more in terms of defense spending.”
Last year, Dutch Admiral Rob Bauer, who chairs NATO’s military committee, said Europe must prepare to defend itself, according to remarks posted on NATO’s website.
“Deterrence is the seven-feet-tall bouncer in front of the nightclub that makes you think twice about going in. So if we make sure we are seven feet tall, we’re in a much better position,” he said.
He said NATO’s 2 percent rule is “a floor… not a ceiling. In reality, it’s more like a basement.”
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