President Donald Trump has launched a blistering attack on Germany at a Nato summit, accusing Berlin of being a “captive of Russia” and attacking Chancellor Angela Merkel for not spending enough on Europe’s defence.

In an outburst timed to the opening of the two-day meeting in Brussels, the US president said Germany was a “rich country” that could boost defence spen-ding “immediately”, setting the tone for a gathering many allies feared would become a public display of divisions.

Mr Trump has criticised Germany in the past, but the pointed remarks at an annual event normally used to underscore unity unnerved some allies, coming days before the US leader is due to hold his first formal summit with Vladimir Putin, the Russian president whom he has praised in the past.