Trump undercuts NATO 75th celebration
BRUSSELS — The North Atlantic Treaty Organization celebrated its 75th birthday on Thursday, older, arguably wiser, and freshly attuned to its own mortality.
At a ceremony at NATO’s headquarters in Brussels, officials and diplomats feted an alliance that is now bigger at 32 members and more relevant, thanks to Russia, than it has been in years. To mark the moment, NATO shipped in its founding charter, the Washington Treaty, from its home in the United States.
But toasts about unity were in many cases undercut by the conversations on the margins of the party, most notably about the possible return to the US presidency of Donald Trump, a man who appears eager to undermine the treaty — and NATO’s existence — by questioning the collective security provisions at its core.
Trump’s recent suggestion that he would encourage Russia “to do whatever the hell they want” to an ally who wasn’t meeting defense spending guidelines has deeply rattled NATO and renewed fear that Trump’s rhetoric is a serious threat to the alliance as it seeks to support Ukraine and deter an aggressive, revanchist Russia.
In the weeks leading up to the meeting, the watchword in Brussels had been “Trump-proofing,” but discussions about how to actually protect NATO and its plans from Trump have been fraught. Among those who believe in NATO’s mission, there is deep fear about what comes next.
“This alliance for 75 years has done exactly what it intended to do, which is improve the collective security of its members,” said retired US Army Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, a former commander of US Army Europe. “If there is a Trump administration, we risk losing all that.”
For now, the alliance is trying to limit the potential damage by convincing Trump and his supporters that NATO is worth preserving. At 75th anniversary events this week, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg took pains to mention “burden-sharing” at every opportunity, a not-so-subtle nod to US voices calling for Europe to do more.
“I don’t believe in America alone, just as I don’t believe in Europe alone,” he said Thursday. “We are stronger and safer together.”