Trump to NATO: 'You don't pay your bills... You get no protection'

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Top western officials criticized former president Donald Trump on Sunday after he suggested the U.S. might not protect NATO allies from a potential Russian invasion if those countries hadn’t spent enough on defense.

Trump’s comments came during a weekend rally in South Carolina in which he appeared to recount a meeting with NATO leaders.

The former president – and likely 2024 Republican nominee - claimed that the president of a “big country”, whom he did not name, once asked him about potential U.S. protection from Russia if that nation fell short on its defense spending.

Trump said he told the NATO leader that the U.S. in that case would offer no protection, and went as far as to say he would even encourage Russia to (quote) “do whatever the hell they want.”

NATO's 31 members have agreed on a target of defense spending that is at least 2% of each country’s gross domestic product. Estimates have shown that only 11 member nations are spending that much.

In a written state