There is no reason to fear that the United States of America (USA) will not defend one of the NATO members if Donald tramp becomes their president again.
This is what the Honorary President of the Social Democratic Party and the former Minister of Foreign Affairs told "Vijesti". Ranko Krivokapic and president of the Atlantic Alliance and former ambassador of Montenegro to the United Nations Milica Pejanović Đurišić, answering the question of whether they expect the US to protect NATO allies in accordance with Article 5 of the Washington Treaty if the country's president becomes Donald Trump again.
This article obliges all NATO countries to stand by a member that is attacked, and it was activated once - after the attack on the USA on September 11, 2001.
The probable candidate of the Republican Party for president of the USA, Donald Trump, in the November elections in that country, regularly criticized other member states because some of them do not allocate at least two percent of their gross national product.
At the February pre-election meeting in South Carolina, he said that an unidentified official of a NATO member state opposed him because of the threat that "the US will not defend members who do not meet the goals of the Alliance for defense." At this gathering, Trump also said that, in the event of an attack on a member that has not met its obligations, he will "encourage" Russia to do whatever it wants to them.
Krivokapić assessed that the USA is "a country of deep democracy and a deep ability to honor its obligations" and added that "whoever becomes the head of that country will not prevent them from fulfilling those obligations."
Pejanović Đurišić said that she believes that in this way Trump "wanted to encourage other member states to allocate more". She recalled the statements of the former American president from 2018, when he said in a television interview that "Montenegro can cause the Third World War"
During the conversation with him, the journalist Tucker Carlson he asked why the US should defend Montenegro in the event of an attack, which it is obliged to do as a member of the Alliance.
“I was wondering the same thing. Montenegro is a small country with very strong people. They are very strong people. They are very aggressive people, maybe they will become aggressive, and congratulations - we are in the Third World War," said Trump.
At that moment, Pejanović Đurišić was the ambassador of Montenegro to the UN, and points out that at that time, on her own initiative, she asked the American administration for a statement about that statement through diplomatic channels.
"I received a reassurance that there can be no fear of that kind - that partners are partners and that partnership is very solid," she told "Vijesta".
The British "Economist" in its analysis after Trump's February statement states that since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the allocation of NATO members for defense has increased, so the number of them spending at least 2% of GDP is now 11, and it is expected that they will increase by the end of 2024. be 18
“However, it seems unlikely that any realistic level of European military spending would appease Trump. Instead, Europe is beginning to face the unimaginable: that it can no longer be trusted that European security will be ensured by American military power, which was certain for 75 years," the newspaper said.
As a counterargument, "The Economist" cites the fact that Trump did not withdraw America from NATO during his first term, as well as that the US Congress last year adopted a law that obliges any president who wants to leave the alliance to obtain a two-thirds majority in the Senate or to the law is passed in Congress.
"Yet for others, such encouragement rings hollow. In his first term, Trump was largely constrained by defense ministers and national security advisers committed to NATO. If he won a second term, he would probably appoint people who would not limit him. Even if he learns that he cannot formally withdraw America from NATO, Trump could fatally undermine his commitment to the treaty by withdrawing American forces from Europe, without providing it with an American nuclear deterrent, and casting doubt on his commitment to order American troops to defend Europe. In such circumstances, Putin would achieve his dearest wish - the complete destruction of any practical significance of Article 5 as far as America is concerned", states "The Economist".
Krivokapić and Pejanović Đurišić attended the panel discussion entitled "75 years of NATO: A security shield in a world of uncertainty", organized by the Atlantic Alliance of Montenegro.
Ambassador of Sweden in Montenegro Anna Ben David answered the same question from the "Vijesti" journalist, said that as diplomats they cannot speculate about what might happen, but must wait to see what will happen. The ambassador of Great Britain agrees with her Don McCann, while he is the ambassador of Finland Niklas Linkdvist responded that he expects the US to defend another member even if the candidate of the Republican Party becomes president.
Deputy Assistant Secretary General of NATO for Public Diplomacy Carmen Romero she said in a video message that the Alliance remains committed to the stability of the Western Balkans, and that the 75th anniversary of that alliance "is an opportunity to remind citizens of the values of NATO, especially in dangerous times."
She said that there is no prosperity without security and that "it is important that we have a strong NATO with more allies."
Romero pointed out that "the Western Balkans is a region of strategic importance for NATO".
"The Alliance remains very committed to the stability of the Western Balkans," said Romero.
Milatović: The region's entry into NATO would overcome historical friction
The President of Montenegro, Jakov Milatović, said at the opening of the panel that the Alliance is a guarantee of peace.
"Membership in NATO for Montenegro is particularly important due to the challenging geopolitical developments. It provides us with protection, predictability and stability within which we can unhindered continue to develop Montenegrin democracy through the strengthening of the judiciary and the construction of civil society", announced Milatović.
According to him, the joint membership of the states of the region is a guarantee of overcoming regional challenges and historical frictions that made us caught off guard when global security milestones were reached.
"The Russian aggression against Ukraine is one of those. During the Cold War, Sweden and Finland did not feel the degree of threat that would shake their neutrality, and today they are members of NATO," added Milatović.
"The importance of NATO is also in the fact that it responds to numerous challenges such as hybrid threats, cyber attacks to which we have also been exposed," added Milatović.
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