Donald Trump heaped fresh criticism on NATO countries on Thursday — wondering if they would defend the United States if necessary. The President claimed that troops from other countries had “stayed a little back, a little off the frontlines” while fighting alongside American forces against the Taliban in Afghanistan. Trump also insisted that the US had “never needed them” — despite NATO Article being invoked only once till date when the US was attacked on 9/11.
On social media platform Truth Social, Trump proposed, “Maybe we should have put NATO to the test: Invoked Article 5, and forced NATO to come here and protect our Southern Border from further invasions of illegal immigrants, thus freeing up large numbers of Border Patrol agents for other tasks.”
Speaking to Fox News on Thursday, Trump also questioned whether NATO would come to the United States’ defence if needed. He also said he was “not sure” NATO would meet the “ultimate test” of defending the US if the country were under threat.
“Maybe we should have put NATO to the test: Invoked Article 5, and forced NATO to come here and protect our Southern Border from further Invasions of Illegal Immigrants, thus freeing up large numbers of Border Patrol Agents for other tasks.” – President Donald J. Trump pic.twitter.com/pc0BabACOm
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) January 23, 2026
What is NATO Article 5?
NATO was formed in 1949 to provide collective security for Europe against the Soviet threat. Article 5 states that an armed attack against one member is considered an attack against all. In practice, the weight of the article depends heavily on US support, as Europe relies largely on America for defence. It has been invoked only once, after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, when NATO allies deployed thousands of troops to Afghanistan. The US contributes roughly two-thirds of NATO’s budget and maintains 40,000 troops in Europe through initiatives like the European Deterrence Initiative (EDI).
After 9/11, Nato countries sent thousands of troops to Afghanistan to support the US campaign. Over the next two decades, the conflict claimed the lives of more than 3,400 Nato soldiers, including over 1,000 troops from outside the US.
Trump questions Nato’s loyalty despite alliance backing US before
Speaking to Fox News on Thursday, Trump said, “We’ve never needed them … They’ll say they sent some troops to Afghanistan … and they did, they stayed a little back, a little off the frontlines,” he added. “We’ve been very good to Europe and to many other countries. It has to be a two-way street.”
Earlier in the week, Trump had described Nato as “overrated” and said he doubted whether alliance members would respond if a serious crisis arose. “I know we’ll come to Nato’s rescue,” he said before attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, “but I just really do question whether or not they’ll come to ours.”
Trump later doubled down with a post on Truth Social, where he suggested the US should have used Article 5 in a very different way — to protect the US from illegal immigrants.