"China is not our adversary. But it has the world's second-biggest military budget, and it does not share our values. The rise of China and all of these global challenges make it all the more important for Europe and North America to work together."

That is what Mr Jens Stoltenberg, secretary-general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato), the US-led military alliance in Europe, said in a landmark speech delivered on Thursday to students from one of Europe's top universities, the youngsters likely to lead the continent in the years to come.