I was on Republic TV in India on July 5, 2026, discussing the NATO summit in Turkey.

I prerecorded my remarks, which Republic split into two parts.

In the first part, I said:

“Clearly, European nations feel they need NATO to protect themselves from Russian aggression, but the question is to what extent the United States under President Donald Trump wants to continue helping them.

“Trump accuses Europe of freeloading, letting America pay for their defense while bloated European bureaucracies lavish money on generous social welfare spending.

“Trump says it is unfair for the United States to have to shoulder a wildly disproportionate share of the European defense burden.

“Some European nations have responded by increasing their defense budget, and at the summit, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte will be pointing to the member states’ new, higher defense budgets as a way of alleviating Trump’s concerns.

“He will also highlight European efforts to continue sending weapons to Ukraine, which Trump is pressuring to seek terms from Russia and to cede conquered territory to Putin.”

In the second part, I said:

“Some European countries halfheartedly supported the U.S. war against Iran while others opposed it, leading Trump to call NATO a ‘paper tiger.’

“At the same time, NATO allies pulled away from the United States when President Trump threatened to invade Greenland, a Danish protectorate.

“All in all, the NATO summit will likely be an airing of grievances among allies who are struggling to show how the organization still matters after its original enemy, the Soviet Union, collapsed 35 years ago. Member states will no doubt try to cut deals to boost security with greater efficiency.

“But a lot of Americans are wondering if NATO is still relevant today and why U.S. taxpayers should still be supporting this organization, which some say has outlived its usefulness.”

Here is the video clip: