Ministers try to calm US fears over forces

Cabinet Ministers tried to reassure the US yesterday that deep cuts in defence spending would not prevent the UK being a "first rank" military power after Washington raised concerns publicly.

In an unusually-open warning shot, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she was worried about the impact of the funding squeeze here and across Europe on Nato’s effectiveness.

Downing Street would not be drawn, ahead of next week’s defence and spending review announcements, on whether the UK would still hit the alliance’s target of spending 2 per cent of GDP on defence.

But Defence Secretary Liam Fox insisted it would remain a “major contributor”.

Dr Fox and military top brass have been pushing for cuts to be nearer 4 per cent than the 10 per cent wanted by the Treasury from the 37bn-a-year Ministry of Defence budget.

The results of the wide-ranging Strategic Defence and Security Review will be published next Monday and Tuesday and the Whitehall-wide Comprehensive Spending Review will appear on Wednesday.

Mrs Clinton spoke out about the cuts in a television interview on Thursday during a visit to Brussels, where she also held talks with Foreign Secretary