NEW YORK, April 10. /TASS/. The United States is still considering the possibility of "punishing" several of its NATO allies who failed to support the US during the conflict with Iran, ABC News reported.
A US administration official told ABC News that the US may redeploy its troops from the NATO countries that proved unhelpful to other NATO states that Washington believes provided some kind of assistance during the conflict. However, ABC continued, it is currently "unclear how advanced the plan is and which countries would be impacted if the decision is made to implement it."
The ABC source also declined to comment on whether US President Donald Trump informed NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte of such intentions during their meeting in Washington this week. The US President has repeatedly criticized NATO allies for insufficient military spending and for refusing to support the military operation against Iran. He also stated his intention to reconsider the United States’ role in the alliance.
The Wall Street Journal previously reported that the US is considering a plan to "punish" several NATO countries that Washington believes failed to support its military operation against Iran. According to the newspaper, the proposal would involve moving US troops out of North Atlantic Treaty Organization member countries deemed unhelpful to the Iran war effort and stationing them in countries that were more supportive. The proposal would fall far short of President Trump’s recent threats to fully withdraw the US from the alliance, which by law he can’t do without Congress. Furthermore, the plan could include closing US bases in Europe, likely in Spain or Germany.