KNOWING YOUR ENEMIES:

Former president Donald Trump on Thursday offered his most explicit statement to date that he threatened not to defend NATO allies from attacks by Russia.

Appearing at an event held by the Heritage Foundation in Florida, Trump claimed that he told fellow NATO leaders that he might not abide by NATO's Article 5 collective-defense clause if those countries didn't pay more for the alliance.

"[A fellow leader] said, 'Does that mean that you won't protect us in case -- if we don't pay, you won't protect us from Russia' -- was the Soviet Union, but now Russia," Trump said. "I said, 'That's exactly what it means.' "

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