Donald Trump Encourages Russian Aggression against NATO Members

Donald Trump yesterday encouraged Russia to invade members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the alliance in which the United States and the other allies pledge mutual defense against an attack. NATO is the most successful defensive pact in history, as it has deterred the Soviet Union and now its successor, the Russian Federation, whose leader, a former Soviet intelligence officer, is trying to restore the Soviet Empire. Members of the alliance have been increasing their defense spending for a decade since establishing the goal of spending at least 2% of their gross domestic product on defense. But Trump, who has criticized the alliance based on the defense spending levels of members since he made a trip to the Soviet Union in 1986 in which he was enticed to conduct business, falsely implies that the organization is based on dues that some are not paying to the organization, as if the U.S. is bearing an extra burden for their inadequate spending. Moreover, Trump wrongly believes the alliance is of no benefit to America, as if it were only to the benefit of the other members. In fact, the only time the NATO treaty provision for mutual self-defense was invoked was against al-Qaeda after the Islamist terrorist organization’s attacks on America on September 11, 2001 that killed a record three thousand people. Trump fails to appreciate that the deterrence of the mutual pledge of support of the members deters attacks, which thus protects American security from aggressors, particularly the Russian Federation, whose leader, Vladimir Putin, is an ex-Soviet intelligence officer intent on trying to restore the Soviet Empire. Among other machinations, Russia has invaded two former Soviet Republics, Georgia and Ukraine, and stations troops in a third, Moldova, without its consent. It backs the dictator of another, namely Belarus, and has stationed nuclear weapons there, thereby bringing them into closer range to NATO members. The defense forces of the other NATO members, and their willingness to station American and NATO forces on their soil, form a bulwark for the defense of the American homeland by deterring further Russian aggression. Trump, who lied about not continuing to conduct business with Russia during his presidential campaign in 2016, openly called for Russian interference in the elections against his opponent, which it began to do within minutes of his specific request. Trump accepted the Russian interference and his campaign coordinated messaging with information the Russians had stolen and released through their cut-out, which was only one facet of a “sweeping and systematic” Russian “active measures” campaign of interference in the American elections that won Trump the Republican presidential nomination and the general presidential election, according the Republican Special Counsel, U.S. intelligence agencies and the GOP-led Senate Intelligence Committee. In office, Trump undermined American policy of defense against Russia in a number of ways. Therefore, it is reasonable to fear that Russia would similarly heed Trump’s call to invade NATO members. I had posted last month that the U.S. defense bill that was signed into law included a provision that would require congressional approval of withdrawal from NATO, instead of only a presidential act, but the fear remains that Trump could simply undermine NATO in various other ways, as his recent comments encouraging more Russian aggression prove. Meanwhile, Putin’s American presidential candidate has been continuing to discourage continued Congressional approval of defense funding for Ukraine, which is aiding his friend Putin’s war of aggression and genocide. Trump’s candidacy should be considered disqualified by conservatives for several reasons, all of which are the result of his poor character, but his threat to American security is the most critical reason of all.