The rift has been most glaring over US President Donald Trump's repeated threats to seize Greenland.

The rift has been most glaring over US President Donald Trump's repeated threats to seize Greenland. Trump’s disparaging remarks about his NATO allies’ troops in Afghanistan drew another outcry. The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation was formed in 1949 to counter the security threat posed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Its deterrence is underpinned by a strong American troop presence in Europe. The alliance is built on the political pledge that an attack on one ally must be met with a response from them all. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth is due to meet with his counterparts at NATO on Feb 12.