Europe's high anxiety over Trump

 But carefully worded platitudes will only serve to mask the reality that Trump's America is largely abdicating its NATO leadership role, weakening the once-durable military alliance. "Even if he commits to the alliance," says Sophia Besch, a research fellow at the Centre for European Reform, "given the erratic comments of the past, US leadership is still not there."

…Mattis and other administration officials have restated America's commitment to Article 5, but Trump hasn't. "Article 5 is No. 1 to European leaders," Besch says. …Which is why they're apprehensive about Trump's pro-Russian sentiments and his alleged campaign's links to Russia. Nonetheless, Besch says, it's doubtful they'll raise those concerns this week. "They will not want to make it a topic and risk falling out over it."…And at both summits, Trump's counterparts will be only all too aware that they are dealing with a man whose chaos-plagued presidency is already struggling. "I don't think the allies will allow that to enter their thinking," Besch says.