Trump draws line in NATO: Finland protected, Spain possibly out
Donald Trump (photo: Getty Images)
US President Donald Trump stated that he is ready to defend Finland in the event of a Russian attack. At the same time, he suggested that Spain might possibly be excluded from NATO, according to a White House broadcast.
Earlier today, Donald Trump met with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö and spoke to the press together.
During the press session, Trump was asked whether he would defend Finland if Russia and Putin were to attack. In response, he said:
"I would. Yes, I would. They're member of NATO. I would. They're great people, but I don't think that's going to happen. I don't think he's going to do that. I think the chances of that are very, very small. But it's very interesting because you have a very big military relative to your size. You have a very powerful military, one of the best. And certainly we will be there to help," Trump said.
During the discussion, the US president also commented on Spain. In particular, he suggested that due to low military spending, the country might need to be removed from NATO.
"We had one lagard. It was Spain… You have to call them and find why are they a lagard? And they're doing well, too. You know, I think because of a lot of the things we've done, they're doing fine. Maybe you should throw them out of NATO, frankly," the US president said.
A few weeks ago, President Trump stated that NATO countries should shoot down Russian aircraft that violate Alliance airspace.
This comment was in response to an incident on September 19, when three Russian MiG-31s entered Estonian airspace and flew there for 12 minutes.
In June, Trump said that the US remains committed to the principle of collective defense, including Article 5 of the NATO Charter.
