Speaking at a rally in Conway, South Carolina, Trump recounted a story he has told before about an unidentified NATO member who confronted him over his threat not to defend members who fail to meet the trans-Atlantic alliance's defense spending targets.
But this time, Trump went further, saying had told the member that he would, in fact, "encourage" Russia to do as it wishes in that case.
As of 2022, NATO reported that seven of what are now 31 NATO member countries were meeting that obligation — up from three in 2014.
Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine has spurred additional military spending by some NATO members.
Trump has often tried to take credit for that increase and bragged again Saturday that, as a result of his threats, "hundreds of billions of dollars came into NATO"— even though countries do not pay NATO directly.
Persons:
Donald Trump, Trump, NATO's
Organizations:
Coastal Carolina University, South Carolina Republican, Republican, NATO, Congress, SENATE, AS, WE, US, UNITED STATES, Trump, .
Locations:
Conway , South Carolina, U.S, Russia, Ukraine's Crimean, Ukraine, United States