Trump Offers Backing To NATO Defense Pact: ‘I Stand With It’

US President Donald Trump said he stood behind NATO’s mutual defense obligations after a historic vote by its members to raise their defense spending to 5% of GDP, offering a commitment that will bolster anxious European allies.

Trump’s comments came just a day after he arrived at the NATO summit at The Hague, questioning NATO’s defense clause and putting allies on edge about whether the US was disengaging from the alliance and collective security more broadly.

“I stand with it, that’s why I’m here,” Trump said Wednesday at a meeting with Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof when asked about the Article 5, which requires members to defend each other against attack. “If I didn’t stand with it, I wouldn’t be here.”

Asked if he would defend countries, Trump responded: “Well, what did I just say? Yes. Of course. Why would I be here?”

Trump’s comment offering unequivocal support for the treaty obligation marked a crucial victory for NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.

Rutte painstakingly orchestrated a summit focused on highlighting members’ plans to increase spending, minimize frictions with the US president and win the commitment of the world’s largest economy and most powerful military to the group’s mutual defense pact.

Trump’s comments will also be welcomed by allies, coming at a critical time for an alliance that faces some of its starkest challenges in decades. Russia’s war in Ukraine is in its fourth year and Trump’s efforts to end the conflict have left allies worried he will abandon Kyiv or hand off any responsibility for maintaining a future ceasefire to Europe. There is also anxiety that the US will withdraw troops and weapons from the continent.

Trump has assailed what he sees as US allies excessive reliance on Washington for collective security and called on them to shoulder more of the burden — amplified by his repeated threats that he may not be willing to come to their aid in the event of war.

On his flight to the Netherlands, Trump demurred when asked about Article 5, claiming that it was open to multiple interpretations. He also shared a post on social media showing that a majority of his supporters would approve if he decided to withdraw the US from NATO.

Still, Rutte downplayed those tensions and oversaw a gathering in which leaders flattered Trump, seeking to win him over. The secretary general heaped praise on the president, saying at a welcome dinner on Tuesday night that Trump’s “longstanding leadership” was responsible for the decision to increase defense spending.

The 5% threshold is a target Trump has pushed allies to adopt and marks a sizable increase over the current 2% level.

“We’re with them all the way,” Trump had said of NATO during a meeting earlier Wednesday with Rutte.