After Trump's claims, here's what to know about NATO member defense spending

Former President Donald Trump's remarks over the weekend that he would «encourage» Russia «to do whatever the hell they want» to NATO allies that fail to meet defense spending guidelines have raised a lot of questions and drew rebuke from the White House and NATO's leader.

«You don't pay your bills, you get no protection. It's very simple,» he said at a campaign event in Conway, South Carolina.

While multiple Republican senators backed Trump's remarks, President Joe Biden called Trump's comments «shocking» and «un-American,» adding that the commitment to NATO is «sacred.»

Trump's comments put the safety of U.S. troops and their allies at risk, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said in a statement.

The Republican presidential front-runner's remarks raised questions about NATO's guidelines on defense spendings and how much each ally country contributes to NATO's military efforts.

NATO data show that almost all allies are expected to meet the defense spending guidelines in 2024 — contrary to Trump's comments.

Here's what else to know about NATO defense funding.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or NATO, is a political and military alliance formed in 1949 in the aftermath of World War II. Started with only 12 members, the alliance expanded to 31 nations and now includes European countries such as Turkey and Iceland, Canada and the U.S.

One of the prominent clauses of NATO's treaty is Article 5, which deals with collective defense, which says that any attack on a member country is an attack on all of the countries in the alliance, according to its website. Article 5, which is not enforced automatically, but requires agreements from all allies, was invoked only once after the 9/11 attacks on the U.S.

NATO allies choose to