Thread by @OARichardEngel

Next up, we’re taking a look at what went down at the #NATOSummit this week and what it all means. #OnAssignment

.@realDonaldTrump promised an “interesting time” and he certainly delivered. Check out this exclusive report by our @NBCNews colleagues nbcnews.to/2zCAOe2

#NATO Sec Gen @jensstoltenberg said the talks between @realDonaldTrump and other leaders had “made NATO stronger.” But some are still fearful about the President’s gravitation towards Putin’s #Russia.

The president has in the past questioned the benefit of #NATO, calling it "obsolete” and “fat and sloppy” before he entered the White House.

#NATO is the world’s most powerful military alliance & has been around for 70 years. The US contributes more money, more hardware and more personnel than any of the other 28 member countries. We joined a recent big exercise on #Russia’s doorstep.

Professor of political science at Notre Dame @mcdesch has called #NATO a zombie, saying the organization is outdated, a sentiment that’s been taken up by many in right wing circles over the past few years.

Mark Simakovsky, an ex-NATO chief of staff at the Pentagon says the president is using anti-NATO rhetoric to win votes at home. “Americans are frustrated about freeriding and over-commitment of US security – it’s a political tool.”

Critics say that #NATO’s mission ended with the fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of the Cold War. But its supporters say it’s needed now more than ever to help deter Russian aggression.

In the past decade, Putin has sent forces into non-NATO countries Ukraine and Georgia. Other countries on #Russia’s border view their NATO membership as a key deterrent. #OnAssignment

Governments in Sweden and Lithuania are giving out booklets to help people prepare for war. Citizens in the Baltic States are joining volunteer defense forces in record numbers. #OnAssignment

.@mcdesch says that #NATO’s expansion is partly to blame for provoking Russia. He believes #NATO members are overestimating the threat from #Russia.

But ex-Pentagon staffer Mark Simakovsky thinks @realDonaldTrump’s meeting with Putin is playing into the Russian President’s hands. “Putin would love the image of a meeting with Russia to be the dominating headline of President Trump’s swing through Europe.”