Former US President Donald Trump will withdraw US support for Ukraine if he is elected next year, which will cause a chain reaction that will lead to the disintegration of NATO, said his former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper.
He said that in the event of Trump’s victory, one of the first things that would happen would be the cessation of aid to Kyiv.
“Of course, if that happens the whole support for Ukraine in the war with Russia will fall apart,” he said.
He added that Trump’s next move would be the withdrawal of the US from NATO, as well as a certain number of soldiers from the members of the Alliance.
“Eventually it would lead to the collapse of the Alliance,” he said.
Trump has repeatedly said that he will end the conflict in Ukraine within 24 hours if he is elected.
The former president has hinted that he will use military aid as leverage to achieve this by cutting off the flow of weapons to force Kyiv to the negotiating table.
During his presidency, Trump criticized European NATO members, accusing them of failing to meet the bloc’s goal of spending two percent of gross domestic product (GDP) on defense.
According to former national security adviser John Bolton, Trump was ready to announce the withdrawal of the US from the Alliance in 2018, “Russia Today” reminds.
According to media reports, Trump intended to withdraw the military from Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, stressing that he did not want American soldiers to be “the world’s policemen”, Srna news agency reports.