WESTERN leaders, including Donald Trump, are making final preparations for the forthcoming North Atlantic Treaty Organization (Nato) summit in London. After French President Emmanuel Macron's assertion that the military alliance is experiencing "brain death", Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg's chief goal will be to steady the ship during its 70th anniversary summit in which new perceived threats like China will be discussed for the first time.

Mr Macron's remarkable outburst was driven by what he sees as a rapidly changing geopolitical landscape, including the diminished commitment of the United States, under the Trump presidency, to Nato. Looking ahead to the 2020s and beyond, however, Mr Macron and other Nato leaders are aware of wider shifts in the global security environment, including threats and opportunities from China. What is perceived as Beijing's growing global assertiveness - including its missile systems - is a rising concern in Washington, in particular, and numerous Trump officials see the nation as a near-peer competitor.

In his interview, Mr Macron exemplified his assertion about Washington's waning commitment to Nato by the White House's failure to consult Western allies before pulling US forces out of Syria. This development is reverberating inside the organisation as the move opened the way for a much-criticised move by Turkey - itself a Nato member which has just decided to buy the Russian S-400 anti-aircraft missile system - to push into Syria and create what it calls a security zone along its border. Meanwhile, Kurdish forces, who had been helping Western forces fight the so-called Islamic State group, were expelled from the area.