00:00How can a country actually withdraw from NATO?
00:06US President Donald Trump has ramped up his harsh criticism of NATO in recent weeks
00:12against the backdrop of the war in Iran,
00:14going as far as threatening to pull out of the alliance
00:17after European countries and other Western partners refused to actively take part.
00:22Trump called the alliance a paper tiger,
00:24after NATO countries didn't respond to his calls to assemble a naval force
00:28to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
00:30Trump's comments have sparked confusion online as to how a country can launch the process to leave the alliance.
00:36So what do the rules actually say?
00:38Article 13 of the 1949 North Atlantic Treaty says that to leave,
00:42a country needs to formally notify the US,
00:45which then lets all the other members know it will then officially withdraw a year later.
00:49So it seems straightforward enough for European countries and Canada,
00:53subject to their own domestic laws and processes,
00:56but how could the US quit the alliance?
00:57Under the North Atlantic Treaty,
00:59the US acts as both a member and the depository of the alliance,
01:03meaning that it manages the treaty texts and handles accession and withdrawal notifications.
01:08Essentially, the US government would have to notify the US Department of State
01:12of its intention to withdraw.
01:14It would then fulfill its usual obligation of letting all the other members know.
01:18In theory, the US could remain NATO's depository without being a member,
01:22but the remaining countries would likely vote through an amendment to the treaty to give those duties to someone else.
01:28In 2023, then-President Joe Biden signed legislation blocking a president from quitting the alliance
01:34unless they're backed by a two-thirds majority in the Senate.
01:37Nevertheless, even without an official exit,
01:40some commentators have warned that the US could instead apply further pressure on NATO,
01:45such as restricting its military exercises and refusing to honor the Mutual Defense Clause,
01:50fundamentally damaging the way the alliance works.
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