Germany has to make some major changes in its dealings with Russia or the West won’t be able to rescue Ukraine, former White House National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien told Newsmax on Friday.
O’Brien, who held the National Security Council (NSC) post under former President Donald Trump from 2019-20 spoke to Newsmax shortly after addressing the Republican National Committee (RNC) at its winter meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah.
“Germany has gone too far and been too friendly with Russia,” said O’Brien, who noted that last month the German government blocked Estonia from shipping 30-year-old howitzers to Ukraine that once belonged to the old East Germany army.
“Not letting the Estonians give arms raises the question of whether Germany is really committed to Ukraine,” he said.
This is just one matter O’Brien feels President Joe Biden should raise with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz when the two leaders meet in Washington, D.C., next week and discuss Ukraine.
O’Brien, who also served as Trump’s special presidential envoy for hostage affairs, further suggested that Germany reexamine its policy regarding Nord Stream 2—the pipeline under the Baltic Sea which will bring Russian gas to Germany pending regulatory approval.
“Germany is fully a part of the Atlantic Alliance and the West and the U.S. can’t take on Russia without Germany,” he told us.
O’Brien, 55, has been mentioned as a long-shot Republican presidential candidate in 2024.
Asked about any presidential ambitions, he replied, “I am trying to get as many Republicans as I can be elected in ’22. Then we’ll look at what is after that.”
John Gizzi is chief political columnist and White House correspondent for Newsmax. For more of his reports, Go Here Now.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.