“Polite and naughty” in NATO. Trump divides allies, Poland among favorites

The White House has created a list of “polite and naughty” NATO countries, the Politico website wrote on Wednesday. It has not been revealed what consequences the allies may face or what considerations they can count on. The biggest winners may be Poland and Romania – said the website.

The list, which was prepared ahead of NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte's recent visit to Washington, includes information on the contributions of allies to NATO and divides them into groups, said three European diplomats and a Pentagon source.

Politico emphasized that this is the latest signal that Trump intends to carry out his threats against countries that do not comply with his wishes. This is also another point of pressure on the Alliance.

In December, Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said that “model allies that are mobilizing, such as Israel, South Korea, Poland, and increasingly Germany, the Baltic countries and others, will enjoy our special favor.” “Allies who continue to fail in their collective defense responsibilities will face the consequences,” he added.

– The White House has a document with naughty and polite (allies – PAP), so I think it is similar thinking – said the European diplomat.

The administration of US President Donald Trump is considering how to punish allies who refused to help in the war with Iran, the portal noted.

“While the U.S. has always stood by our so-called allies, the countries we defend with thousands of troops are not with us during Operation Epic Fury,” White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said, referring to the war with Iran.

The authorities did not reveal what consequences the allies might face or what considerations they could count on. One option is to redeploy American forces. According to Politico, this could most likely involve relocating soldiers from one European country to another. This would be expensive and time-consuming, the website noted.

The portal wrote that Poland and Romania may be among the biggest winners, because Trump has a good attitude towards them and they are countries that would be happy to accept more soldiers.

Two European officials said the US could take troops, joint exercises or arms sales from “rude” allies and give them to allies it considers “polite.”

It also gives Trump tools to distinguish between alliance members between those who supported US actions in Iran – such as ending the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and allowing the use of bases – and those who did not.

While Spain, Britain and France rejected or held off on American requests for aid, Romania and several smaller countries allowed the US to use their air bases. Bulgaria also quietly supported American logistics in the Middle East, Politico reported.

From Washington Natalia Dziurdzińska (PAP)

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