The Mob boss and Nato

James Comey, the former FBI director, said of Donald Trump that he bore more resemblance to a Mob boss than a democratic politician. In Comey’s experience Trump was a leader who demanded loyalty oaths, wanted absolute control, traded in lies and insisted on an us-versus-them worldview. Unfortunately, these traits will undoubtedly be on display when the US president arrives at the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) summit in Brussels.

Trump’s tweets reveal a leader determined to turn the alliance into a protection racket. The president wants to shake down his military partners for some cash. He wants the summit to be all about who does and doesn’t spend 2% of GDP on defence. If partners refuse to pay? Well, the threat is left hanging: there are trade wars Trump could fire up or he could revive his campaign pledge to drop Washington’s commitment to defending Nato allies if they are attacked. As Comey said, it is like dealing with the Mafia.

It is these kinds of actions that make Trump so dangerous. The Nato alliance has helped mould the modern world and ushered in a democratic, liberal world order characterised by open trade and open societies, which after the collapse of the Soviet Union needed only to be lightly defended. This, in turn, contributed greatly to American peace and prosperity.

A perception that the burdens are unequally shared is not new. It is almost as old as the alliance itself. Barack Obama worried that other nations did not act for themselves, waiting instead for the US to lead. Obama could be criticised for sermonising, but he was being straight. He saw that the defence of the multilateral rules-based order against jihadist terror, Russian adventurism and Chinese intimidation was essential. But it required other nations to shoulder their responsibilities. This seems fair.

By contrast, Trump wrongly sees the US being disadvantaged, not advantaged, by the global order. His tactics are to tear it down rather than build it up. London, July 10