GERMANS SAY NO TO TRUMP.
Foreign minister’s criticism echoes other experts
President Donald Trump’s Saturday tweet accusing Germany of owing the United States “vast sums of money” for NATO might have been an attempt to put pressure on the European ally. But Berlin has rejected his claim while also questioning his understanding of NATO finances.
On Sunday, German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen called the criticism “inaccurate,” without mentioning the president’s name.
“NATO does not have a debt account,” von der Leyen said, according to her ministry. In reality, NATO has only a small logistical budget, which relies on funding by all member states. The vast majority of NATO members’ total resources are managed domestically, however.
The criticism echoed other experts, including former U.S. ambassador to NATO Ivo Daalder.
“Trump’s comments misrepresent the way NATO functions,” Daalder told The Washington Post. “The president keeps saying that we need to be paid by the Europeans for the fact that we have troops in Europe or provide defence there. But that’s not how it works.”
Von der Leyen also indirectly criticized Trump’s plan to reduce funding for UN peacekeeping missions. German defence expenditure was not exclusively dedicated to NATO missions, she emphasized, and additional German funding would be used for UN peacekeeping missions, for instance.
“What we want is a fair burden-sharing, and in order to achieve that we need a modern understanding of security,” von der Leyen said.
The rebuke of Trump indicates growing concerns in Berlin over trans-Atlantic relations. The percentage of Germans who view the United States as a trustworthy ally has dropped from 59 per cent in November to 22 per cent in February. In recent months, Sigmar Gabriel, Germany’s outspoken vice chancellor and foreign minister, has even called Trump a “threat.”
This is a shift in a nation that has long considered itself one of the United States’ closest allies, although at times an uncomfortable one. Germany’s foreign policy is still shaped by memories of the Second World War, and foreign military operations are deeply unpopular with German voters.