UK and NATO allies must prepare for crisis without US support, MPs warn
The warning comes from the Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy, made up of MPs and peers, which said Britain should begin reducing its heavy reliance on Washington in key areas of defence and security.
A cross-party parliamentary committee says Britain and its Nato partners should plan for a “worst-case scenario” in which Europe can no longer rely on the US in a crisis.
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The warning comes from the Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy, made up of MPs and peers, which said Britain should begin reducing its heavy reliance on Washington in key areas of defence and security.
The committee urged the government to “plan to move away from a bilateral relationship with the United States that is so dependent on the latter for nuclear and intelligence operations, and conventional defence”.
It also said the UK, Europe and Canada should develop a plan “for a transition towards greater European leadership of NATO”.
This comes as Donald Trump renewed his criticism of US allies over Iran, mocking the Royal Navy’s two aircraft carriers as “toys” and saying other NATO countries had “done absolutely nothing” to tackle the Iranian regime.
In its report, the committee said ministers should prepare for a “worst-case scenario” in which Europe can no longer rely on American support.“
This would mean Europe can no longer rely on US support in the event of a crisis and "the Government must work with European partners to invest in its own capabilities to offset this potential withdrawal", it said.
The report warned that tensions between Donald Trump’s administration and Sir Keir Starmer’s government could undermine some of the key foundations of Britain’s national security.
It pointed to UK dependence on the US in areas including the maintenance of Trident missiles used by Britain’s nuclear deterrent, intelligence sharing, the F-35 fighter jet programme and plans for new attack submarines.
Referring to that reliance, the report said: "There are demonstrable areas of tension in the UK-US relationship that may compromise the reliability of these dependencies in the near future.”
The intervention comes amid growing concern over Mr Trump’s approach to Nato and wider European security, with the White House’s priorities increasingly seen as unpredictable.
The committee said the government should continue to work with the US where possible, but warned that Britain and its allies now needed a clearer plan to strengthen Europe’s own capabilities.