"We have pledged our sacred honor, the United States of America, our sacred honor to the NATO Treaty," Joe Biden says. | AP Photo Biden reassures NATO allies: I don't think Trump 'understands what Article 5 is'

Vice President Joe Biden sought to reassure NATO allies on Tuesday of the United States' "sacred honor" to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and specifically Article 5, in the face of continued concerns about the prospect of what a President Donald Trump would do — going so far as to suggest that Trump does not understand "what Article 5 is."

"This is an historic day, I can remember being a young senator and watching my colleagues react as I did and seeing people lining up holding hands – the Baltic Way," Biden said during remarks in Riga, Latvia, along with the presidents of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania, according to a pool report. "It was an electrifying moment and there’s been so much progress made since that time."


Unlike President Barack Obama's criticism of Trump overseas, which has come in the context of responses to reporters' questions at news conferences, Biden's comments came during remarks to the dignitaries in attendance.

"I’m here looking forward to discussing the details of decisions taken in Warsaw, also economic issues," Biden said. "But I want to make it clear, absolutely clear to all the people of the Baltic States, we have pledged our sacred honor, the United States of America, our sacred honor to the NATO Treaty and Article 5."

Biden declared that the U.S. has "never reneged on any commitment we have made" and that "our sacred honor is at stake." But Biden also said that Trump's remarks are "nothing that should be taken seriously, because I don’t think he understands what Article 5 is."

"And, but there is continued overwhelming bipartisan agreement in the United States of America, in both political parties to maintain our commitment to NATO, we reaffirmed that in Warsaw, and the concern that the US is somehow disengaged ... is simply not true," Biden said, referring to the recent NATO summit. "As a matter of fact our presence will be enhanced, there will be more NATO partners on the Russian border, there will be more than a single tripwire. We are absolutely thoroughly 100 percent committed to our NATO obligation including and especially to Article 5."