A former senior NATO commander is drawing headlines after claiming President Donald Trump poses a greater threat to the Western alliance than Russian President Vladimir Putin\u2014a charge the White House has forcefully rejected and that many U.S. conservatives say ignores key facts about NATO\u2019s recent history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In an interview with The Independent<\/em>, General Sir Richard Shirreff, NATO\u2019s former deputy supreme allied commander for Europe, criticized Trump\u2019s blunt rhetoric toward U.S. allies, particularly comments about Greenland and European defense commitments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe have to take him literally,\u201d Shirreff told the newspaper. \u201cWe have to assume with Trump, as with Putin, that the worst case will happen. Trump is the greater threat [to NATO] if you want to make the comparison. It\u2019s Trump who gets the prize.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Shirreff\u2019s remarks come despite Trump\u2019s repeated insistence that he would not use force to take Greenland, a territory controlled by NATO member Denmark. Trump has framed the issue primarily in terms of U.S. national security and Arctic defense, arguing that America bears disproportionate responsibility for protecting the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During his first term\u2014and again since returning to office\u2014Trump has consistently pressed NATO allies to meet their long-standing commitment to spend at least 2 percent of GDP on defense, a goal many European countries ignored for decades. Supporters argue that Trump\u2019s tough approach helped reverse years of complacency and forced allies to take their own security more seriously.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Shirreff nevertheless went further, claiming Trump had \u201cdestroyed the international order\u201d during the first year of his second term and was undermining NATO itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe lead nation of the alliance has threatened the territorial integrity of another member,\u201d Shirreff said. \u201cHow do you move on and rebuild trust? Nobody will trust Trump again.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Many Republicans counter that this view overlooks Trump\u2019s record of strengthening NATO militarily rather than rhetorically. U.S. defense spending rose during Trump\u2019s presidency, and several NATO countries increased their own military budgets after sustained pressure from Washington\u2014something previous administrations had failed to achieve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Shirreff acknowledged that Russia remains an \u201cexistential threat\u201d to Europe, but argued that Vladimir Putin\u2019s 2022 invasion of Ukraine initially unified NATO, while Trump has allegedly \u201cdecoupled America from European security\u201d and left the alliance \u201cbelow the waterline.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cClearly, Putin threatened it massively but Trump has attacked the one alliance which grants our security,\u201d Shirreff said, adding that the rules-based global system was now \u201ca dead duck.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n The White House sharply disputed that assessment. In a statement to The Independent<\/em>, officials dismissed Shirreff\u2019s comments and said Trump \u201chas done more for NATO than anyone,\u201d pointing to U.S. military contributions and increased allied defense spending under his leadership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On Greenland, the White House added: \u201cThe United States is the only NATO partner who can protect Greenland, and the President is advancing NATO interests in doing so.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
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