White House front-runner and former US President Donald Trump confirmed on Saturday his willingness to "encourage" Russia to attack NATO members who are behind on their financial obligations.

At a campaign rally in South Carolina, Trump spoke of a conversation he had with a head of state at an unspecified NATO meeting.

"One of the presidents of a big country stood up and said, 'Well, sir, if we don't pay, and we're attacked by Russia, will you protect us?' I said, 'You didn't pay, you're delinquent?'" he said.

Read more: NATO not to defend US if attacked, Trump says

He continued, "No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You got to pay. You got to pay your bills."

In a statement later that night, White House Spokesperson Andrew Bates said, "Encouraging invasions of our closest allies by murderous regimes is appalling and unhinged," adding, "Rather than calling for wars and promoting deranged chaos, President Biden will continue to bolster American leadership."

This comes two months after EU diplomats and think tank officials have begun contacting former US President Donald Trump's associates to determine whether he will withdraw the US from NATO if re-elected, a report by The New York Times revealed. 

With polls suggesting that Trump may be the primary contender for the Republican party, a slew of former Trump administration officials and anti-Trump commentators have declared that a second Trump presidency would spell the end of NATO.

'Worst border in the world'

In a separate context, during the rally on Saturday, Trump celebrated the collapse of the bipartisan bill that included new funding for Ukraine, aid for "Israel", and reforms for the US-Mexico border crisis.

The proposed bill included $60 billion to support Ukraine and $14.1 billion in security assistance designated for the Israeli occupation.

Trump promised, if reelected, to execute a mass "deportation operation" on his first day in office.

"Let's not forget that this week we also had another massive victory that every conservative should celebrate. We crushed crooked Joe Biden's disastrous open borders bill," Trump said, adding, "The whole group did a great job in Congress."

Trump, who also encouraged building a "big, beautiful wall" during his first presidential campaign, declared that one of his first tasks back in office would be deporting migrants.

"On day one I will terminate every open border policy of the Biden administration and we will begin the largest domestic deportation operation in American history. We have no choice."

Last month, Trump criticized the Biden administration for permitting the ongoing surge of migrants at the southern border, comparing the border to a "weapon of mass destruction."

"Our border has become a weapon of mass destruction — our destruction," he wrote in a series of blog posts on his Truth Social media platform, pointing out that 302,000 migrant encounters were documented in December alone, which he characterized as "an all-time record."

"Just 3 years ago we had the strongest and safest Border in U.S. History. Today we have a catastrophe waiting to happen. It is the WORST BORDER IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD, an open wound in our once great Country," Trump argued.

No time to spare

Trump did not spare a minute in his speech to badger Nikki Haley, his GOP rival for the presidency, in her own home state.

Trump questioned where her husband Michael was since he had been absent in her campaign for being on a year-long military deployment to Djibouti.

"Where's her husband? Oh, he's away. He's away. What happened to her husband? What happened to her husband," he ridiculed.

Read next: If elected, Nikki Haley pledges to pardon Trump

Trump's mockery prompted a response from Haley on X, who said: "Michael is deployed serving our country, something you know nothing about. Someone who continually disrespects the sacrifices of military families has no business being commander in chief."

Michael is deployed serving our country, something you know nothing about. Someone who continually disrespects the sacrifices of military families has no business being commander in chief. https://t.co/AfN3u4AsJc

— Nikki Haley (@NikkiHaley) February 10, 2024

Michael Haley in turn tagged Trump in a post on X with a close-up photo of a wolf overlaid with the text: "The difference between humans and animals? Animals would never let the dumbest ones lead the pack."