E-Paper
Is the US leaving NATO? Can a president withdraw? Trump–Rutte meeting sparks buzz
NATO chief Mark Rutte is meeting US President Donald Trump who is angry with military alliance over the Iran war and has mused pulling out.
President Donald Trump is going to discuss US withdrawal from NATO, with secretary-general Mark Rutte, during his meeting on Wednesday. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced the same, even as Trump has been left angered by the military alliance over the Iran war.
The Republican president who launched strikes on Iran with Israel, taking out their Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, had asked for help from allies with the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran had placed a chokehold on, amid the ongoing conflict.
Also Read | Have Democrats filed impeachment articles against Trump over Iran war? Everything you need to know
Rutte and Trump have otherwise shared a warm relationship, but the recent events has raised questions over whether the US plans to leave NATO – the alliance which has been in place since after World War II, formed at the time to deter rising Soviet influence. The question has also been asked whether Trump has the power to have the US leave NATO. Here's all you need to know.
Can the US leave NATO?
Yes, any member nation can choose to exit the NATO alliance. The method of exit is outlined in Article 13 of the The North Atlantic Treaty. It mentions “After the Treaty has been in force for twenty years, any Party may cease to be a Party one year after its notice of denunciation has been given to the Government of the United States of America, which will inform the Governments of the other Parties of the deposit of each notice of denunciation.”
Given that the NATO treaty was drawn up in 1949, it is way over twenty years now and the US could technically leave the alliance. It says that the notice of denunciation must be given to the US government, which means if the US wanted to quit the alliance it would put in the notice to its State Department after which the country would have to inform other allies of the deposit of the denunciation notice. From this time on, there would be a one-year countdown, after which the US could exit NATO.
Can a president withdraw from NATO?
Yes, under international law the head of a state can withdraw from NATO. However, the US has laws in place which prevent the president from taking unilateral action in exiting the military alliance.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024 goes into details about it in Subtitle H--Limitation on Withdrawal From NATO.
It states “Subtitle H prohibits the President from withdrawing from NATO by suspending, terminating, denouncing, or withdrawing the United States from the North Atlantic Treaty except (1) by and with the advice and consent of the Senate with two-thirds of the Senators present concurring, or (2) pursuant to an act of Congress.”
“The subtitle also limits the use of any authorized funds from this bill to support any decision by a U.S. government official to attempt to withdraw the United States from NATO,” it further adds. Thus, the law makes it very clear that Congressional and Senate-level clearances.
Thus, Trump could not technically leave NATO single-handed unless both the Congress and Senate back the move. However, as commander in chief, the president would retain the option to withdraw troops or move them as he sees fit, which might leave the NATO alliance without US military help.
