<
https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/jul/18/stoltenberg-assures-eu-that-nato-would-survive-second-trump-presidency>
"Europe must not fall into the trap of creating a “self-fulfilling prophecy”
that Nato would die under a second Trump presidency and that the transatlantic
bond would be over, the secretary general of the military alliance has said.
Jens Stoltenberg said leaders must engage with Donald Trump in the same way
they did in 2016, no matter what the rhetoric during the US election campaign.
“I worked with him for four years,” he said. Asked if he thought Trump had
changed since the end of his presidency in 2020, Stoltenberg said he could not
answer but added: “I think it’s important not to create self-fulfilling
prophecies in a way that assuming that a new administration in the United
States will mean the end of Nato. There were concerns about that also in 2016.
The reality was that Nato is stronger after four years … more troops, high
readiness.”
European leaders are growing increasingly concerned about the prospect of
Trump’s running mate, JD Vance, taking a controlling position in foreign policy
if Trump wins in November. Vance was one of the leading opponents of the new US
aid package to Ukraine, held up for months but finally approved in the spring.
On Wednesday night, Vance signalled that the US’s commanding role in global
security would not be a given in a Trump administration, telling party faithful
gathered at the Republican national convention in Milwaukee that US soldiers
would no longer be sent overseas unnecessarily. “We will send our kids to war
only if we must,” Vance said.
In an interview with the
Guardian on the sidelines of the European Political
Community meeting at Blenheim Palace in the UK, Stoltenberg said he remained
optimistic about the future of Nato."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
