Pence offers ‘unwavering’ NATO pledge to conference
MUNICH — America’s commitment to NATO is “unwavering,” Vice President Mike Pence said Saturday, reassuring allies about the direction the Trump administration might take but leaving open questions about where Washington saw its relationship with the European Union and other international organizations.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel called for strengthening a range of multilateral bodies — the EU, NATO and the United Nations — and lauded the benefits of “a free, independent press.”
In his first foreign trip as vice president, Pence sought immediately to address concerns raised by President Donald Trump’s earlier comments questioning whether NATO was “obsolete.”
Pence told the Munich S e c uri t y Conference, a n annual gathering of diplomats and defense officials: “I bring you this assurance: The United States of America strongly supports NATO and will be unwavering in our commitment to our trans-Atlantic alliance.”
“Your struggles are our struggles. Your success is our success,” Pence said. “And ultimately, we walk into the future together.”
Merkel, speaking before Pence, told him and other leaders that “acting together strengthens everyone.”
Her address came amid concerns among allies about the Trump administration’s approach to international affairs and fears that the U.S. may have little interest in working in international forums.
“Will we be able to continue working well together, or will we all fall back into our individual roles?” Merkel asked. “Let’s make the world better together and then things will get better for every single one of us.”
Trump has praised Britain’s decision to leave the 28-nation EU. And a leading contender to be the next U.S. ambassador to the EU, Ted Malloch, has said Washington is “somewhat critical and suspicious” of the bloc and would prefer to work with countries bilaterally.
Pence did not mention the European Union in his speech, something picked up on by French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, who wrote on Twitter: “In Muni c h , Vi c e P r e s i d e n t Pence renews Americ a’s commitment to the Atlantic alliance. But not a word on the EU.”
Pence did say, however, that the U.S. was on a path of “friendship with Europe and a strong North Atlantic alliance.”
G e r ma n Fo r e i g n Mi n - i ster Sigmar Gabriel also indicated skepticism about Pence’s pledges, saying that he agreed Europe needed to work with the U.S. on the basis of common values. But in a barely veiled reference to Trump, he said that “both countries must define their interests, and our foreign policies should not be driven by ideology.”
“Ideologies lead to hostile concepts that might not be able to be overcome,” said Gabriel, who is chairman of the Social Democratic Party, Merkel’s junior coalition partner.
He said Europeans “should hope for the best but prepare for the worst.”
In pledging the Trump administration’s support for NATO, Pence said the U.S. expected all countries to live up to commitments to spend at least 2 percent of gross domestic product on defense.
“Europe’s defense requires your commitment as much as ours,” he said.
Merkel reiterated that Germany is committed to the 2 percent goal though Germany currently contributes about 1.3 percent.
“We will do everything we can in order to fulfill this commitment,” she said. “But let me add, however, that I believe while NATO is very much in the European interest, it’s also in the American interest — it’s a very strong alliance where we are united together.”
Merkel , who met wi t h Pence one-on-one followi n g t h e i r s p e e c h e s , a l s o acknowledged that Europeans couldn’t fight global issues like Islamic extremist terrorism alone.
“We need t he mil i t a r y power of the United States,” she said.