President-elect Donald Trump, who has long criticized NATO as overly reliant on American money, on Wednesday, November 20, nominated loyalist Matt Whitaker to the crucial post of ambassador to the alliance.
"Matt is a strong warrior and loyal Patriot, who will ensure the United States' interests are advanced and defended," Trump said in a statement. "Matt will strengthen relationships with our NATO Allies, and stand firm in the face of threats to Peace and Stability - He will put AMERICA FIRST," Trump said.
NATO has been bracing for Trump's return to the White House after he threatened in February to stop guaranteeing US protection for member states if he did not believe they contributed enough financially. Alliance chief Mark Rutte was quick to congratulate the Republican after his election victory and played up the positive impact he said Trump could have. "His leadership will again be key to keeping our Alliance strong. I look forward to working with him again to advance peace through strength through NATO," Rutte said.
Earlier this year, Trump said that, when he was president, he warned NATO allies that he "would encourage" Russia "to do whatever the hell they want" to countries that are "delinquent" as he ramped up his attacks on foreign aid and long-standing international alliances.
The choice of Whitaker as the nation's representative to NATO is an unusual one, given his background is as a lawyer and not in foreign policy. Whitaker, a former US attorney in Iowa, served as acting attorney general between November 2018 and February 2019 during Trump's first term, as special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian election interference was drawing to a close.