U.S. President Donald Trump stated he will address the nation regarding potential withdrawal from NATO and his dissatisfaction with the alliance.
Trump on Possible U.S. Exit from NATO
President Trump revealed in a Reuters interview on Wednesday that he will consider withdrawing the United States from NATO during an evening address to the nation.
Trump also announced the U.S. would “leave Iran pretty quickly,” but could return for “targeted attacks” without specifying a timeline. He added, “They won’t have a nuclear weapon, because they’re not capable of having one, and I’ll be gone and I’ll take everybody with me, and if we have to, we’ll come back and do targeted attacks.”
Trump’s Assessment of Iran
The President assessed that a “total change of regime” has occurred in Iran. He stated, “I have a very good chance of making a deal, because they don’t want to be attacked anymore.”
Trump continued, “I didn’t need a change of regime, but it happened because of the casualties in the war… So we have a change of regime and, importantly, they’re not going to have a nuclear weapon,” assuring that Iranians “don’t want” nuclear weapons.
Iran’s Uranium Reserves
When questioned about Iran’s enriched uranium reserves, Trump responded, “It’s deep underground. I don’t care. We’ll always be watching it through satellite.”
Trump’s “Disgust” with NATO
Trump announced he would inform the public during his address that he is considering withdrawing the U.S. from NATO and express his “disgust” with the alliance. He stated, “I’ll be talking about my disgust with NATO.”
When asked if he was considering withdrawing from NATO, he replied, “Absolutely, no question about it. Wouldn’t you do that?” He complained, “When we needed them, they weren’t friends.”
Trump continued, “We never asked them for much… it works one way.”
NATO as a “Paper Tiger”
Trump also discussed NATO in an interview with the British newspaper “The Telegraph” published Wednesday. He indicated he was seriously considering withdrawing the United States from the alliance, which he labeled a “paper tiger.”
The newspaper commented that this was the strongest signal yet from the U.S. administration that it no longer considers Europe a credible partner in defense, following European NATO countries’ refusal to send ships to the Middle East to unblock the Strait of Hormuz.
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