German Defense Minister compares NATO crisis to a 20-year marriage

Minister of Defense of Germany Boris Pistorius compared the current situation in NATO to a couple's crisis after 20 years of marriage. This was stated in his interview with RND.

The German Defense Minister was asked whether NATO has confidence that the United States will support an ally under attack.

"Let me make a somewhat unusual comparison. Someone who has been married for 20 years may eventually go through a crisis. A crisis of trust, a crisis of alienation. Or their life priorities may change," Pistorius said.

In his opinion, there are two impulses in such a case: to fight or to flee.

"You can either divorce or, if the common ground for the relationship still exists, you can solve the problems constructively. To be clear: I still have no doubt about the common ground in NATO," Pistorius said.

He added that he sees no signs that the United States wants to withdraw from NATO.

The minister believes that the only one who benefits from this debate is the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.

• The crisis in NATO arose against the backdrop of the US president's desire to take control Greenland, a self-governing island within Denmark. On January 9, Trump admitted that he might have to make a choice between the possession of Greenland and the existence of NATO.
• On January 18, the US Treasury Secretary could not answer what was more important for national security: the United States being a member of NATO or the possession of Greenland.