When a U.S. president bestows major non-NATO ally status on countries, it is not just an honorific. The status bestows privileges on the recipient, allowing it favorable access to materials and supplies and even technologies still in the testing process. Major non-NATO allies also often preposition supplies and undertake regular training with the U.S. military. Beyond the legislative substance, the status reflects diplomatic endorsement and greenlights investment.
In recent years, however, U.S. presidents have both bestowed the status as a diplomatic bauble to undeserving countries, including those who often act against U.S. interests or, conversely, withheld the status from countries that consistently augment national security but ran afoul of progressive orthodoxy.
The status bestows privileges on the recipient, allowing it favorable access to materials and supplies and even technologies still in the testing process.
In 2022, President Joe Biden bestowed major non-NATO ally status upon Qatar, no matter the Persian Gulf state’s cheerleading for Hamas and the Taliban, its clandestine funding for other radical groups, and its efforts to corrupt U.S. universities and think tanks. His move followed Qatar’s $20 billion deal to purchase Boeing passenger planes, suggesting a quid pro quo. While the status was a feather in Qatar’s cap, it arguably did more harm than good by antagonizing more important U.S. allies, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
In effect, Biden’s embrace of Doha was both a gratuitous insult to other Arab states and signaled a lack of U.S. support for the Houthis’ defeat in Yemen, a mission to which both Riyadh and Abu Dhabi had signed up. While Qataris and their Defense Department supporters may point to Qatar’s role in processing Afghan refugees following the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, this is equivalent to praising the arsonist for donating tents after burning down the house.
While Biden removed Afghanistan from major non-NATO ally status in 2022, Pakistan remains. There can be no greater insult than this designation to the Americans who perished trying to bring a better life to Afghanistan. Pakistan openly supported the Taliban, and two Pakistani factories supplied the precursors for 90% of the improvised explosive devices the Taliban used. Pakistan has become a satrapy of China, and openly roots for Beijing over Washington. Pakistani officials refuse to arrest or extradite the terrorists who murdered Americans, among many others, in the 2008 Mumbai attacks. Frankly, making Pakistan a major non-NATO ally makes as much sense as bestowing the honor on Cuba, Iran, or Venezuela.
Other countries deserve question marks. After the United States liberated Kuwait in 1991, Kuwaitis were grateful. More than 60% of Kuwaitis today, however, were born after those events. Ordinary Kuwaitis no longer hold any special attachment to the U.S., and, more disturbingly, Kuwait’s leadership increasingly embraces extremism in action if not in rhetoric. Indeed, while Qatar remains the focus of U.S. ire, Kuwaiti money laundering and extremist financing can be just as bad.
For every country that does not live up to its major non-NATO ally designation, there are some that successive administrations inexplicably bypass.
While Jordan, too, has been a consistent ally over the decades, Queen Rania’s advocacy for Hamas during a visit to Congress this year and King Abdullah II’s moral equivalency on the issue should also raise red flags and questions about how long Jordan’s major non-NATO ally status should be warranted.
For every country that does not live up to its major non-NATO ally designation, there are some that successive administrations inexplicably bypass. India, for example, is the world’s largest democracy and an increasingly important partner. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are long-standing allies. Armenia deserves a reward for both flipping its orientation away from Russia and working with Western military and intelligence partners.
Given the inconsistency of the major non-NATO ally designation and the questionable merit of some countries included, perhaps President-elect Donald Trump could simply strip each country of its designation on Day One of his second term, craft a more rigorous standard to qualify, and then invite would-be major non-NATO allies to apply for reinstatement.
For Argentina, Bahrain, and New Zealand, there would be no problem. Qatar and Pakistan? Some applications just get lost in the mail.
Published originally under the title “Trump Should Cut Off Fake Major Non-NATO Allies.”
