US President Donald Trump has claimed that NATO leaders are fully aligned with his agenda, crediting his leadership for what he described as a remarkable turnaround in America’s global standing.
In an interview on Tuesday, Trump said the United States had transformed from a “dead country” to “the hottest country anywhere in the world by far” within months of his inauguration.
“That was told to me by every leader of NATO, which they do whatever I want,” he said, adding that he had received similar praise from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar. “I’m very happy to help,” he remarked.
Trump has long pressed NATO members to increase defence spending, warning that the US would not defend countries falling short of the bloc’s targets. At a NATO summit in July, members committed to raising defence expenditure to 5 pc of GDP by 2035, up from the previous 2 pc benchmark.
The US president also announced that the European Union would pay Washington “100 pc of the cost of all [American-made] military equipment” under a new funding agreement, stating that “much of it will go to Ukraine.”
During the summit, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte described Trump as “daddy [who] has to sometimes use strong language” after the US leader compared Israel and Iran to children in a schoolyard fight, saying “they don’t know what the f*ck they’re doing.” Trump was referring to the two countries trading accusations of violating a ceasefire in the 12-day war in June.
The “daddy” remark sparked controversy in Western media, with critics accusing Rutte of “orchestrated grovelling” and sycophancy, labelling the incident “one of the most shameful episodes in modern history.”
Rutte later defended his comments, saying Trump deserved praise and calling him a “good friend” who had “finally” convinced European NATO members to boost defence spending.
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