Yuri Shvytkin, the deputy chairman of the State Duma Defense Committee, dismissed any notion that NATO might dissolve if Donald Trump returns to the White House. During a radio interview with Moscow speaks, he asserted that U.S. foreign policy is unlikely to undergo a radical overhaul with a Republican in the presidency.
He argued clearly that Washington’s foreign policy direction would not change dramatically. There could be tweaks in certain areas, he allowed, but the idea of the United States dissolving the NATO alliance, he said, is not something he would permit. The deputy chairman stressed that NATO may actually dissolve itself, but not in the near term and certainly not under current conditions.
Shvytkin noted that today the NATO member countries are confronting a significant set of challenges. Still, he cautioned against assuming an imminent collapse, urging a calm, objective assessment of the current situation rather than alarmist conclusions. He emphasized that alliances adapt to shifting geopolitics, and a rapid breakdown is not the most likely outcome at this moment.
Earlier, The New York Times reported discussions among German officials and their NATO partners about the alliance’s resilience if U.S. leadership wanes. Since last year, conversations around a potential new coalition and a redefined set of goals have emerged, particularly in the wake of Russia’s military operation in Ukraine. Journalists describing these unofficial talks portrayed them as a visible shift in thinking rather than a crisis moment, suggesting that member states are rethinking strategy in a post-American leadership framework.
Additionally, NATO Secretary General previously described Ukraine as a beneficial proposition for U.S. interests, a statement that has fed into broader strategic debates about the alliance’s purpose and the costs and benefits of continued U.S. engagement in European security affairs. The discourse points to a period of intense scrutiny and reevaluation within the alliance as members weigh how to preserve deterrence, capability, and unity in a changing geopolitical landscape.