Nato alarm over Trump’s ‘World War 3’ comment on Montenegro

DONALD TRUMP’S suggestion that Montenegro may not be worth defending because its people are “very aggressive” and could trigger World War Three will be welcomed in Moscow, but will have set alarm bells ringing in Nato capitals.

The fact that the suggestion in a TV interview comes days after a private meeting with Vladimir Putin may make those alarm bells ring louder.

The tiny Balkan nation may rarely make the headlines, but it has been a pressure point in recent escalating tensions between Russia and the West.

The country of 600,000 has been independent of Serbia only since 2006 and in recent years has turned westward, vowing to join first Nato and later the European Union. That path has been a sore point with Moscow which sees itself increasingly hemmed in by an expansionist Nato. It believes the largely Orthodox Christian and Slavic country should naturally be its own ally. Russia has also had its eyes on securing access to the Adriatic port of Bar for itself.

Moscow’s vigorous efforts to stop Montenegro’s accession to the military alliance included lavishly funding an opposition bloc and, according to the British government, plotting a failed

‘In Moscow, anything that sows discord in the Nato alliance will be chalked up as a win’

2016 coup. The plans failed and Montenegro joined Nato in 2017. Aware of its size and vulnerable location, Montenegro has tried to reassure the West it will be a reliable ally and partner.

Its defence spending is on course to reach the Nato benchmark of 2 per cent of GDP by 2024, while a quarter of its 2,000-strong army has served in Afghanistan. Any suggestion from Mr Trump that its membership is now shaky will be music to Russia’s ears.

Not only does it risk undermining Western influence in Montenegro, but it will sow doubt among Eastern European members who, deep down, wonder whether they, too, would be defended by the US.

In Moscow, anything that sows discord in the alliance will be chalked up as a win.