IN A SPEECH TO CHEERING CROWDS IN WARSAW, TRUMP CALLED ON THE WEST TO DEFEND ITS VALUES AT ALL COSTS: THE ‘FUNDAMENTAL QUESTION OF OUR TIME IS WHETHER THE WEST HAS THE WILL TO SURVIVE.’
U.S. president criticizes Russia and North Korea
WARSAW • Donald Trump warned the West must show a “will to survive” at a speech in Warsaw Thursday, as he lashed out at Russia and North Korea on the eve of the G20 summit.
In a visit to the Polish capital before flying to Hamburg, the U.S. president was met with thunderous applause as he called on the Western alliance to defend its values “at all costs.”
He stressed the importance of NATO and claimed the relationship between Europe and the U.S. was “stronger than ever” — despite his fractious relationship with Angela Merkel, the German chancellor.
In response to North Korea’s test launch of a longrange nuclear missile this week, he said: “They are behaving in a very, very dangerous manner and something will have to be done.”
Discussions on how to tackle the rogue nation will be a top priority for world leaders when they meet in Hamburg for the G20 summit Friday.
“As the Polish experience reminds us, the defence of the West ultimately rests not only on means, but also the will of its people to prevail,” Trump told a large, cheering crowd at Krasinski Square.
“The fundamental question of our time is whether the West has the will to survive. Do we have the confidence in our values to defend them at any cost?
“Do we have the desire and the courage to preserve our civilization against those who subvert and destroy it?”
Throughout the speech Trump held up Poland’s history, marked by long struggles for freedom against Nazi occupation and Communism, as an example the West should follow.
In a move that would have reassured a host troubled by Russian aggression in Ukraine, Trump stressed American support for Article 5 of the NATO treaty, but demanded more European nations spend two per cent of GDP on defence.
“The United States has demonstrated with its actions, not just words, that it stands firmly behind Article 5,” he said. “Words are easy, but it is actions that matter. And for its own protection, Europe, and you know this: Europe must do more. Europe must demonstrate it believes in its future by investing in the defence of its future.”
Trump received an enthusiastic reception from the crowd, which had been bused to the event by Law and Justice, Poland’s governing party.
Most of them made their political loyalties clear when they cheered and applauded the arrival of members of Poland’s conservative government and the party. Many others chanted “Donald Trump” and “USA! USA!”
It came after Trump held a press conference with Andrzej Duda, the Polish prime minister, where he admitted Russia “could have” interfered in the U.S. election.
Trump claimed Moscow was “destabilizing activities in Ukraine and elsewhere.”