Senate Republicans skeptical of Trump’s NATO withdrawal plans

Many Senate Republicans are not on board with President Donald Trump’s suggestion that the United States might withdraw from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Senate Majority Leader John Thune said, The Wall Street Journal reports.

“We got an awful lot of people who think that NATO is a very critical, incredibly successful post-World War II alliance,” Thune said of past conversations among Republicans about the move.

“I think in the world today, you need allies,” he added.

According to US officials, Trump has discussed with his advisers the possibility of pulling the US out of NATO if member nations do not assist in reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a key maritime passage. Growing tensions with European allies have sparked concerns about the stability of the alliance, which has served as a cornerstone of the post-World War II international order.

Thune emphasized that most Senate Republicans recognize NATO’s strategic importance and its role in global security, suggesting there is little appetite within Congress for abandoning the alliance.

By Vafa Guliyeva