Poland Defense Minister Scoffs at Donald Trump's NATO Comments

Polish Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz dismissed Donald Trump's comment about the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) on Sunday after the former president suggested he would "encourage" Russia to attack member states who fall short of guideline financial contributions to the alliance.

During a rally in South Carolina on Saturday, Trump appeared to recall a conversation with an unnamed politician he described as "one of the presidents of a big country." Trump said the anonymous leader had asked whether the U.S. would protect the NATO nation if Russia attacked.

"I said everybody's gonna pay. They said, 'Well if we don't pay are you still going to protect us?' I said, 'Absolutely not.' They couldn't believe the answer. You've never saw more money poor in," Trump said at the rally. "They asked me that question, one of the presidents of a big country, stood up, said, 'Well sir, if we don't pay and we're attacked by Russia, will you protect us?' I said, 'You didn't pay, you're delinquent?' He said, 'yes.' Let's say that happened. No, I would not protect you, in fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want."

However, according to NATO's Article 5, it mandates that an armed attack on one alliance country is seen as an attack against all member states. Member countries have a defense-pending target of approximately 2 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP), although this is a guideline and many countries do not reach this threshold despite increases in spending since Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Trump's comments come after high tensions between Russia and NATO have seemingly escalated in recent weeks after the military alliance's announcement last month of its largest military exercise in more than 35 years.

Kosiniak-Kamysz, who also serves as Poland's deputy prime minister, dismissed Trump's comment on Sunday in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

"NATO's motto 'one for all, all for one' is a concrete commitment. Undermining the credibility of allied countries means weakening the entire North Atlantic Treaty Organization. No election campaign is an excuse for playing with the security of the alliance," he wrote.

Trump, the GOP frontrunner in the 2024 presidential race, and President Joe Biden are continuing to campaign around the country as they are likely to face each other in a rematch of the 2020 presidential election.

Newsweek has reached out to the Poland Bureau of the Minister of National Defense, NATO and Trump's campaign via email for comment.

Kosiniak-Kamysz's comments come after the White House slammed Trump's remarks, denouncing the former president's comments as "appalling and unhinged."

"Encouraging invasions of our closest allies by murderous regimes is appalling and unhinged—and it endangers American national security, global stability and our economy at home," said White House spokesperson Andrew Bates.

In addition, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg responded to Trump's comments, reiterating how dangerous the former president's suggestion is.

"Any suggestion that allies will not defend each other undermines all of our security, including that of the US, and puts American and European soldiers at increased risk. I expect that regardless of who wins the presidential election the US will remain a strong and committed NATO Ally," he said in a statement on Sunday.

While Poland is considered one of the closest allies in Europe to the U.S., Kosiniak-Kamysz has also recently expressed concerns about Russia's war with Ukraine expanding across the borders of the strategic alliance.

Last week, he acknowledged during an interview published by Polish newspaper Super Express that Moscow could attack Poland, as Russian hostilities with his country and other NATO member states along Russia's eastern border escalate amid the ongoing war.

Meanwhile, Dmitry Medvedev, former president of Russia and a staunch ally of current Russian President Vladimir Putin, warned in a social media post last week about the potential for a "big war" with NATO. He also claimed that Russia would never initiate a first strike against a NATO member nation, but claimed that it would respond to any potential aggression against its own "integrity" or increased NATO association with Ukraine, warning of a "big war" that would follow.

Putin has insisted that he is "interested in developing relations" with NATO members and has "no reason" and "no geopolitical interest" to "fight with" member states.

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