Trump’s NATO comments stir up a political storm as Russia keeps quiet

• The Kremlin on Monday declined to comment on Donald Trump's remarks about not wanting to protect a NATO country from a future attack by Moscow, if they were behind on their payments.
• Trump's comments have thrust the Republican front-runner into the center of a political storm and sent shockwaves throughout the Western military alliance.
• U.S. President Joe Biden described Trump's remarks as "appalling and dangerous."

Former U.S. head of state and presidential candidate Donald Trump stoked the ire of U.S. lawmakers and international leaders, after remarking he would not protect NATO countries from Russian attacks if they lag on their membership payments.

Speaking at a rally in South Carolina on Saturday, Trump said that, as president, he warned NATO allies that he "would encourage" Russia "to do whatever the hell they want" to a member country that didn't meet its defense spending guidelines.

Trump, who has a long history of criticizing the transatlantic military alliance, recounted a time when an unspecified president of a NATO member challenged him on his threat not to defend them from a potential Russian invasion if they failed to meet NATO's target of spending at least 2% of their budget on the military.

"You didn't pay, you're delinquent … No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You got to pay. You got to pay your bills," Trump said.

The U.S. has historically had the largest number of military personnel out of all NATO countries, counting 1.35 million troops in 2023, according to Statista.

Trump has been accused of entertaining close ties with Russia during his first presidential mandate. The Kremlin declined to address Trump's remarks.

"I am still [Russian