NATO Can Be Viable With or Without the U.S.
Europeans should call Trump’s bluff by showing him they can take care of their own defense.
Prepare for a rocky summit.
Photographer: Romy Arroyo Fernandez/NurPhoto via Getty Images
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization boasted on Twitter that the four World Cup semifinalists — France, the U.K., Belgium and Croatia — are members of the alliance. The U.S. failed to qualify for the tournament, so on the soccer field at least, the alliance can hold its own. But could the common defense pact survive without its dominant military power?
Some military experts have asked that question since President Donald Trump’s election. Although he has repeatedly criticized European allies for not spending enough on defense (at least from the U.S. perspective), Trump is very unlikely to announce a pullout at the organization’s summit on July 11-12. Extricating the U.S. would take more time than Trump has in the White House, and it would probably be blocked by Congress. Moreover, Europeans don’t want the U.S. out.