Pompeo Says NATO Risks Extinction Unless It Adapts to Reality

Comments follow Macron’s ‘brain death’ barb against alliance
Trump envoy adds fuel to criticism of NATO burden sharing

U.S. troops take part in the NATO ‘Noble Partner 2017’ military exercise in Tbilisi, Georgia.Photographer: Vano Slamov/AFP via Getty Images

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By Patrick Donahue and Iain Rogers

November 8, 2019 at 6:43 AM UTC

Updated on

November 8, 2019 at 12:38 PM UTC

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U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo said NATO risks becoming irrelevant, adding fuel to criticism of the military alliance as grandees gathered in the German capital to mark the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

A day after Emmanuel Macron slammed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, President Donald Trump’s top envoy said the alliance would lose significance if its 29 members don’t contribute enough to common defense.