Donald Trump is aggressively threatening to withdraw the United States from NATO, a move that would dismantle the world's most powerful military alliance and plunge Western security into disarray. These threats, described as his most determined to date, have left the 77-year-old alliance facing its worst crisis in history, according to former US ambassador Ivo Daalder. Trump's long-standing skepticism about NATO has escalated significantly since North Atlantic allies refused to participate in the month-long, faltering US-Israeli assault on Iran.

Speaking to Reuters, Trump stated he was “absolutely without question” considering withdrawal, and told the Telegraph the matter was “beyond reconsideration,” insisting he had never been “swayed by Nato.” He characterized the bloc, founded in 1949, as a “paper tiger” that America's adversaries, like Putin, do not take seriously. Trump also signaled his intention to express his “disgust with NATO” in an address to the nation.

The catalyst for this intensified rhetoric was Trump's decision to launch the war on Iran on February 28, in partnership with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but without consulting NATO allies. He did not invoke Article 5 of the treaty, which triggers collective defense in the event of an armed attack against a member, as such an attack had not occurred. More than a month into the conflict, the anticipated regime change or collapse in Tehran has not materialized. Instead, Iran responded by closing the economically vital Strait of Hormuz, leading to a global oil price surge and a worldwide shortage of fertilizer and other essential goods, consequently threatening a global recession.

Trump has vacillated between claiming a negotiated end to the war is imminent and threatening a ground assault, while simultaneously urging allies to join the fight and force the Strait back open. However, none of Washington’s traditional partners have come forward. Some European allies have condemned the US-Israeli attack as illegal, with France's Emmanuel Macron calling US strikes