‘EPIC’

Trump Repeatedly Discussed Withdrawing U.S. From NATO: Report

Former NATO commander said a pullout “would be the gift of the century for Putin.”

President Trump privately discussed pulling the United States out of NATO several times over the last year, The New York Times reports. Such a withdrawal would have effectively destroyed the military alliance between the U.S., Europe, and Canada and fulfilled a dream of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Quoting senior administration officials, the Times reports that Trump told his national-security team last summer, around the time of a NATO summit, that he didn’t see the point of the alliance. Although Trump did not take action at that time, the officials are worried he might resurrect the threat because U.S. allies have not stepped up their military spending to his liking. Retired Adm. James G. Stavridis, the former supreme allied commander of NATO, said pulling out of NATO would be “a geopolitical mistake of epic proportion” and “the gift of the century for Putin.”