US defence chief sounds doubts over Nato’s future

The future of Nato was plunged into doubt today after Robert Gates, the outgoing US Defence Secretary, questioned the value of the United States maintaining ties with the small and under-funded military forces of Europe. The unusually blunt public remarks criticised the heavy reliance that Britain and other alliance members place on the US Armed Forces when conducting operations in Afghanistan and more recently Libya. Mr Gates also revealed a sense of impatience that US taxpayers were footing the bill because fellow Nato states have cut back so much on military spending that they no longer have the ability or political will to contribute proportionally. “Future US political leaders — those for whom the Cold War was not the formative