WASHINGTON: President-elect Donald Trump chose lawyer Matthew Whitaker on Wednesday (Nov 20) to be US ambassador to NATO, selecting a loyalist with little foreign policy experience for what may be one of the highest-profile ambassadorships during Trump’s second administration.
US relations with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization were strained during Trump’s first term, as the Republican president criticised NATO and accused European members of spending too little on defence.
On the campaign trail this year, Trump showed little sign of softening his posture, saying at one event in February that he would encourage Russia to invade NATO countries that had not spent sufficient funds to defend themselves.
