Europe is wealthier than Russia, its population is larger, and it is more technologically advanced. Yet European leaders increasingly fear the possibility that they might have to defend their borders against Russia without the guarantee of support from the United States.
President Trump dating back to his first term has threatened to pull U.S. military support for European countries as part of their North Atlantic Treaty Organization alliance that was established in 1949 in the aftermath of WWII.
The president has also threatened to dramatically reduce the number of U.S. troops in Germany, Italy, Spain, and other European bases. And he has said the U.S. might not come to the aid of NATO allies that don’t meet new, higher defense spending targets and indicated that the U.S.’s global priorities are shifting from Europe to the Pacific Rim, especially China.
Analysts agree that NATO’s effectiveness over the 75 years of its existence has relied on the assumption that an attack on Europe would be treated as an attack on the United States. The credibility of that promise – Article 5 of the alliance treaty – has been enough to deter potential adversaries without a shot being fired.
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