Donald Trump is considering relinquishing its leadership of Nato after insisting that European allies take more responsibility for the security of the continent, the Mail can reveal.
The US has held its leadership position since the founding of the defence alliance in the aftermath of World War Two. Since then, the Supreme Allied Commander Europe has always been a senior US general.
But in line with the US’s insistence that European allies take more responsibility for Europe’s security, it also expects a British or French general to take up this position.
It comes after the US President stunned Western allies by imposing a ‘temporary’ pause in the supply of vital American military aid following a historic spat with Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office last week.
President Trump warned on Monday night that he would ‘not put up with’ the Ukrainian leader for much longer as the relationship between the pair soured yet further after two weeks of back and forth comments.
Hours later, the White House said assistance was being ‘reviewed’ to ‘ensure that it is contributing to a solution’, triggering warnings that, without a U-turn, Ukraine’s vital stockpile of US weapons would be spent by the summer.
But on Tuesday Zelensky extended an olive branch to Trump after Prime Minister Keir Starmer warned him he had to rebuild relations to save his country.
In a conciliatory intervention, after the White House announced a freeze on military aid to Kyiv, the Ukrainian President said he ‘really valued’ America’s support and was ‘ready to work under President Trump’s strong leadership to get a peace that lasts’.