Trump questioning the alliance with NATO

Rethinking the purpose of Cold War's NATO in the 21st century

The worst offender in this regard was Spain, which refused to allow U.S. planes involved in the Iran war to use its airspace. Spain is also the only NATO member that has not committed to spending 5% of GDP on defense.

President Donald Trump is furious at the unwillingness of America’s European allies to aid the U.S. in reopening the Strait of Hormuz — so angry, in fact, that he is calling the continued usefulness of the alliance into question.

“NATO wasn’t there when we needed them, and they won’t be there if we need them again,” Trump fumed in an all-caps Truth Social post after a Wednesday meeting with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte. He added a gratuitous jab at Denmark, “Remember Greenland, that big, poorly run, piece of ice!!!”

Trump’s anger at NATO has been festering for weeks. On March 26, the president wrote (again in all caps), “NATO nations have done absolutely nothing to help with the lunatic nation, now militarily decimated, of Iran. The U.S.A. needs nothing from NATO, but ‘never forget’ this very important point in time!”

Trump does not have unilateral power to withdraw the U.S. from NATO. The 2024 National Defense Authorization Act forbade the president from “suspend[ing], terminat[ing], denounc[ing], or withdraw[ing] the United States from the North Atlantic Treaty” without the advice and consent of the Senate.

But he can begin a conversation about NATO’s purpose, some 77 years after its creation, and that is just what President Trump has chosen to do.

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