The crisis of the NATO alliance that people on both sides of the Atlantic have been denying or trying to put off is now here: This is the moment when the world finds out whether the United States remains committed to the defense of its allies. People don’t pay much attention these days to the “laws” of neutrality, but for centuries prior to World War II, it was understood that if one nation’s government provided weapons and war materiel directly to another nation at war with a third nation, that legally made the donor a belligerent in the war and therefore subject to attack. The Trump administration’s response has been to tell the Europeans they need to defend themselves, because the United States can no longer afford to do so; to hint at substantial withdrawals of American forces from Europe; and, most recently, to cancel a multiyear defense-training program for the Baltic allies.
Author: Robert Kagan
Published at: 2025-09-10 21:25:15
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