By ELLEN KNICKMEYER
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s pick as NATO ambassador reassured senators at his confirmation hearing on Tuesday that the Trump administration’s commitment to the military alliance was “ironclad.”
The U.S. commitment has been called into question by Trump’s scathing criticism of European allies and his eagerness to build ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Matt Whitaker, an acting attorney general in Trump’s first term, told senators that a key part of his mission would be to push the 32 NATO allies to meet Trump’s demand to increase their own defense spending
Trump sent chills through the alliance with his comment during the campaign that Russia should “do whatever the hell it wants” to NATO members that don’t meet military spending targets. He has played down the threat from Russia and threatened to end U.S. support for Ukraine as it fights off Russia’s invasion.
In the aftermath of Trump’s contentious meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy last week at the White House, European NATO members have been scrambling to assess their defense arrangements, while insisting there is no thought of going it alone without the United States.
Whitaker evaded Democratic senators’ prodding for a more detailed discussion of Ukraine in its fight against Russia. Asked if he agreed that Russia started the war by invading Ukraine, Whitaker cited Vice President JD Vance’s statement that that was the case.
Whitaker, however, spoke positively of NATO. He was asked specifically about the U.S. commitment to the alliance and its bedrock Article 5, by which NATO countries pledge to treat an attack against one as an attack on them all.
“It will be ironclad,” he told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
U.S. administrations have long complained about European allies and Canada relying too much on the United States in NATO. Trump has taken that further, questioning the value to the U.S. of being in the bloc.
NATO leaders say Trump’s criticism in his first term, and the Ukraine war, have led to a majority of NATO states meeting the alliance’s target of spending at least 2% of their gross domestic product on building up their militaries.
Trump recently upped that demand to 5% of GDP. Democratic lawmakers at Tuesday’s hearing noted the U.S. spends about 3.4% of its GDP on its military. NATO countries bordering Russia spend the biggest share, including Poland, at 4%.
Whitaker framed getting allies to meet Trump’s 5% goal as a primary mission for him at NATO.
“I have no concern that our European allies and Canada can do more and want to do more,” Whitaker said. “I fully expect they will do what’s necessary to continue to make NATO the strongest alliance ever in the history of the planet.”
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