2024-02-14 04:57:58
Keith Kellogg, a retired general and chief of staff at the former president’s National Security Council, said in an interview that if a member of the alliance, which includes 31 countries, failed to spend at least 2 percent of gross domestic product on defense, as agreed upon, he would support divesting That country is protected by Article Five of the NATO Charter.
This article stipulates that any attack on one member of the alliance, which is based in Europe, is considered an attack on all, and therefore members of the alliance must respond appropriately. Without this protection, a country cannot guarantee assistance from other members of the alliance.
“I think alliances are important… but if you’re going to be part of an alliance, you have to contribute to it, be part of it,” said Kellogg, who also served as national security adviser to former Vice President Mike Pence.
Trump faced swift criticism from Democratic President Joe Biden and prominent Western officials when he suggested in a meeting over the weekend that he would not defend NATO members if they did not spend enough on defense, but rather would encourage Russia to attack them.
Kellogg did not say whether he had discussed his proposal with Trump, although he said they had often discussed the future of the alliance.
Trump is close to winning the Republican presidential nomination in the general elections scheduled for November 5.
Kellogg said that if Trump wins, he will likely propose a meeting of the alliance in June 2025 to discuss the future.
He said the alliance might then become a “multi-level alliance,” with some members enjoying greater protection based on their commitment to the alliance’s founding articles.
The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment, but it has previously identified Kellogg as a political advisor who might play a role in his administration.
In addition to losing protection under Article 5, Kellogg said other, less severe penalties might be imposed, such as not receiving joint training or equipment, and added that member states were free to withdraw from the alliance.
Kellogg said that the protection provided by Article Five should not be taken for granted in the absence of respect for Article Three in the NATO Charter.
Article III stipulates that NATO member states must make appropriate efforts to develop their individual defense capabilities, but it does not stipulate that countries must spend at least 2 percent of their gross domestic product on defense.
But member states pledged at a 2014 summit in Wales to move towards that number within a decade.
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