Germans are beginning to discuss whether the country will eventually need its own nuclear weapons amid fears of U.S. disengagement with Europe, even as Germany continues to spurn nuclear power.
German officials have begun discussing a nuclear fallback plan with the U.K. and France, thanks in large part to Russia's continued aggression as well as former President Trump's pressure on European allies to meet defense spending thresholds, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.
German Finance Minister Christian Lindner gave voice to concerns in an article published in German media.
"Under which political and financial conditions would Paris and London be willing to maintain and expand their own strategic capacities for our collective security? And conversely, how much are we ready to contribute?" Lindner asked.
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Since the end of World War II, Germany has maintained a pacifist stance, and it has sworn off nuclear weapons and, more recently, nuclear energy.
Germany began shutting down its last three nuclear reactors in April of last year amid its push for "clean" energy. Without the plants, however, Germany is currently relying mostly on coal and natural gas to power its economy.
"Nuclear power supplied electricity for three generations, but its legacy remains dangerous for 30,000 generations," German Environment Minister Steffi Lemke said at the time.
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Germany's fears that the U.S. may stop being a reliable nuclear deterrent come largely thanks to Trump, who was openly hostile to NATO during his term in office and is maintaining that rhetoric on the campaign trail.
Earlier this month, Trump said he would let Russia "do whatever the hell they want" to NATO member countries that are not meeting their funding commitments.
"I would not protect you," Trump recalled saying to a NATO leader. "In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You got to pay. You got to pay your bills."
The NATO treaty states that an attack on one member nation is an attack on all the nations in the alliance. Trump has previously taken issue with the smaller amount of money other NATO countries spend on defense compared with what the U.S. pays. He has also threatened multiple times in the past to withdraw the U.S. from NATO.
