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.
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.
“The reason why I’m expecting the United States to remain a strong ally … is that the main criticism from President Trump but also from the candidate for vice-president, JD Vance, has not primarily been against Nato.
Making Europe Trump-proof is high on the list of concerns raised by European leaders gathered for the European Political Community meeting at Blenheim Palace in the UK, amid fears that not only could Trump abandon the US’s position on Ukraine but he could put pressure on Volodymyr Zelenskiy to accept a peace plan involving the loss of Russian-occupied territory.
The Norwegian prime minister, Jonas Gahr Støre, said that “Europe will have to do its part by taking a larger share of the costs than we now do” in Nato.
Støre said proofing Europe against Trump was on the agenda on the sidelines of the conference, opened by Keir Starmer and Zelenskiy who recalled Winston Churchill’s resilience and bravery.
The original article contains 692 words, the summary contains 236 words. Saved 66%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!