Don warned by Nato chief that ‘going it alone is not an option’

London: NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg issued a stark warning that “going it alone is not an option”, in a pointed article in Britain’s Observer newspaper, reports AFP. “We face the greatest challenges to our security in a generation,” Stoltenberg wrote as he outlined NATO’s strengths, amid concerns over the president-elect’s position on the US-led alliance. “This is no time to question the partnership between Europe and the United States.” Trump caused alarm during his election campaign when he suggested Washington would think twice about coming to the aid of an endangered NATO ally if it had not paid its dues, casting doubt on the alliance’s core collective defence commitment. In an apparent response to these remarks, Stoltenberg noted that the only time NATO’s self-defence clause — “an attack on one is an attack on all” — has been invoked was after the 9/11 terror attacks on the United States, More than 1,000 European soldiers serving in Afghanistan “paid the ultimate price” in an operation that was “a direct response” to the attacks, he added.