Former US President Donald Trump says he threatened the president of a NATO country to encourage Russia to “do whatever the hell it wants” to them if they didn’t invest more in the military.
Now EU Commissioner Thierry Breton claims that the so-called “threat” is in fact about a conversation between Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in 2020.
– He may have problems with his memory, says Thierry Breton in a French interview, according to Reuters.
It was at an election rally in South Carolina that Donald Trump talked about NATO and claimed that NATO countries exploit and squander US resources.
Trump said that he threatened a leader of a NATO country, which did not pay enough for NATO defense, that he would encourage Russia to do what they want with those who do not pay. Donald Trump recounted a conversation he claims he had with an unnamed male European president.
“I said: ‘You didn’t pay? Are you a criminal?’ He said, ‘Well, let’s say it happened.’ No, I wouldn’t protect you. I would actually encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You have to pay,” Donald Trump said at the rally.
Which European president Trump said he had the conversation with has been unclear. Now the French EU Commissioner Thierry Breton says that Trump’s “threat against NATO countries” is about a conversation between Trump and a female, not a male, leader and that it is also not about a president of a NATO country – but the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen. In addition, the conversation must take place in 2020.
“Maybe he has a problem with his memory, it was actually a female president, not of a country, but of the European Union,” said Thierry Breton in a French television interview, according to the Reuters news agency.
Strong reactions
Trump’s statement has provoked strong reactions on Sunday, including from NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
– Any hint that an ally does not want to defend each other undermines everyone’s security, including that of the United States, and exposes American and European soldiers to increased risk, Jens Stoltenberg says.
The White House has also reacted strongly.
“Encouraging murderous regimes to invade our closest allies is repugnant and deranged — and it endangers America’s national security, global stability and our economy at home,” White House spokesman Andrew Bates said in a statement, according to Politico.