Keane: Mattis Will Be Upfront with Trump

Retired Gen. James Mattis called Russia the “principal threat” to the United States’ security and said he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin is “trying to break” the NATO alliance, starkly contrasting his views with that of President-elect Donald Trump during his Senate confirmation hearing for Secretary of Defense on Thursday.

Mattis focused on global threats and the need to boost U.S. military strength to protect national security. The world order, Mattis told the Senate Armed Services Committee, is “under the biggest attack since World War II” and “that’s from Russia, from terrorist groups and with what China is doing in the South China Sea.”

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