Joe Biden said in a statement that Donald Trump’s comments were “shocking and dangerous.” (document)
Washington:
US President Joe Biden slammed Donald Trump’s comments downplaying his commitment to Nato as “shocking and dangerous” and warned on Sunday that the former president intended to support Russian leader Vladimir ·Putin “gives the green light for more war and violence.”
Biden’s comments came after Trump said in a speech on Saturday that he would “encourage” Russia to attack NATO members that fail to meet their financial obligations, his most extreme statement yet about the military alliance he has long expressed skepticism about. lashed out.
The remarks, made at a campaign rally in South Carolina, prompted stark warnings at home and abroad that he was putting military alliances at risk, raising concerns about the common defense of the United States if the former president and current Republican front-runner wins in November. The promise of the treaty was again called into question. .
“It is shocking and dangerous that Donald Trump has admitted that he intends to wage more war and violence on Putin’s behalf, continue his brutal attacks on a free Ukraine, and expand his aggression against the people of Poland and the Baltic states,” Biden said. .” in a statement.
Trump described what he said was a conversation he had with a head of state at an unspecified NATO meeting.
“A president of a large country stood up and said, ‘Well, sir, if we don’t pay and we get attacked by Russia, will you protect us?’ I said, ‘You didn’t pay, you defaulted. ?'”
“No, I’m not going to protect you. In fact, I’m going to encourage them to do whatever they want.”
Trump has frequently criticized NATO allies for failing to meet their goal of spending at least 2 percent of gross domestic product on defense.
“You have to pay. You have to pay your bills,” Trump, who is all but certain to be the Republican nominee in this year’s presidential election, said Saturday.
Trump’s comments came after Senate Republicans on Wednesday rejected a bipartisan bill that would have included much-needed funding for Ukraine, aid to ally Israel and reforms to address the crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border.
A foreign aid package that would decouple aid from border issues fully passed a key procedural vote in the U.S. Senate on Sunday, although Republicans may still block it from becoming law.
The $95 billion package includes funds for Israel and Taiwan, but much of it will be used to help Ukraine rearm as it enters its third year since Putin ordered a full-scale invasion.
The White House previously said on Saturday that “encouraging a murderous regime to invade our closest allies is shocking and unhinged.”
“Breaking” security
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg warned on Sunday that “any suggestion that allies will not defend each other undermines our security, including that of the United States.”
European Council President Charles Michel also condemned the remarks as “reckless”, saying they “can only serve Putin’s interests.”
Republican Senator Marco Rubio, who supported Trump for his party’s nomination, defended the former president on Sunday, saying he “told a story about what happened in the past.”
“He doesn’t talk like a traditional politician,” the Florida senator told CNN’s “State of the Union.”
“Donald Trump is president, by the way, and he’s not pulling us out of NATO. In fact, during his term, U.S. troops are stationed throughout NATO,” Rubio said.
Stoltenberg said he expected “no matter who wins the presidential election, the United States will remain a strong and loyal NATO ally.”
At the rally in South Carolina, Trump also expressed dissatisfaction with his former United Nations ambassador, Nikki Haley, who is challenging Trump for the Republican nomination but is trailing badly in the race.
Asked about Trump’s comments about NATO on Sunday, Haley claimed her former boss sided with Putin.
“What bothers me is don’t side with thugs who kill your opponents. Don’t side with people who invade a country and kill or injure half a million people,” Haley told CBS News’ “Face the Nation.” .
She also defended her husband, Michael Haley, who is on a military deployment in Africa after Trump mocked him for missing the campaign trail.
“We can’t have someone sit back and laugh at the men and women we try to protect America. This is a pattern of confusion,” the former South Carolina governor said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
