A former head of NATO has warned the alliance’s transatlantic relationship is “crumbling before our eyes”.

       Anders Fogh Rasmussen, who was NATO Secretary General between 2009 and 2014, wrote in The Economist that Europe “must now shoulder the burden of securing peace on our own continent” following “80 years of American-backed security”.

       The former Danish PM added: “Doing so will require us to address two equally pressing challenges: ensuring Europe can finally defend itself, and securing a sustainable peace for a sovereign Ukraine.”

       He said Europe needs to come to terms with “the fact that we are not only existentially vulnerable but also seemingly alone” and called for NATO’s defence spending target to be increased to 3% of GDP immediately and 4% by the end of 2028.

       NATO’s current spending target is 2% of national income, although the current Secretary General Mark Rutte said nations should be spending at least 3%.

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       The UK currently spends around 2.3% and plans to raise this to 2.5% but the path to this, for now, remains unclear.

       Mr Rasmussen’s comments come after Friedrich Merz, who looks set to become Germany’s new Chancellor,warned NATO could cease to exist in its current form, with Europe taking care of its own defence independently from the US.

       He warned the Trump administration is “largely indifferent to the fate of Europe”.

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       The leader of the centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) said: "I am very curious to see how we are heading towards the NATO summit at the end of June ... whether we will still be talking about NATO in its current form or whether we will have to establish an independent European defence capability much more quickly."

       Concerns have grown over the US’ commitment to NATO and Europe after a week that saw President Donald Trump suggest Ukraine started the war with Russia, as well as US-Russia peace talks which excluded Kyiv.

       The US President did later concede it was indeed Russia that had launched the attack, with Monday marking the third anniversary of Moscow’s full-scale invasion.

       US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth previously said Washington remains committed to NATO and European security “full stop” - however, he did also warn security on the continent was not of “primary concern”.