European countries should prepare for the possible withdrawal of the United States from NATO in the event of the re-election of President Donald Trump. A number of European diplomats told the newspaper about this The Telegraph.
According to them, European capitals need to "do some planning" and review the current defense potential in light of the threats that Trump poses to the transatlantic alliance.
Last month, The Telegraph wrote that the British government has no plan in case Trump tries to withdraw the US from NATO. However, other capitals began to understand that such preparations should be made.
One European diplomat said Trump's comments were "certainly" cause for "concern". "Nobody knows what he's going to do next," he said.
The official said NATO countries should "plan" for a scenario of action in case Trump weakens the US commitment to European allies. "Preparation required", diplomats say.
However, they also note that NATO has significantly more countries that have reached the target of 2% of GDP spent on defense. According to diplomats, NATO members can tell Trump that "he got what he wanted."
A diplomat from another NATO country said Mr Trump's comments were a sharp relief "that we are so overly dependent on the US". They said a "discussion" on how to hedge against the risk of a US withdrawal was "necessary". Countries like the UK would need to manage European security even more because "if the US leaves, there will be a huge gap".
A third diplomat said uncertainty about the US would force European countries "in our capitals, think more about defense planning - is it adequate or not?"
To always be aware of the most important things, read us at Telegram
