TRUMP URGED: STAND WITH US ON NATO

European governments and Canada are launching a concerted appeal to persuade president-elect Donald Trump to not abandon the Iran nuclear deal or NATO's tough stance toward Russia, warning of dire consequences that could raise the risk of war and weaken the transatlantic alliance.

In a private meeting this week, diplomats from Canada, Europe and other allied nations raised their concerns with a key member of the president-elect's transition team. The delegates told Trump adviser James Carafano that they hoped the new administration would continue to embrace shared values, including upholding human rights and a shared defence policy with NATO at its core.

During the private meeting Monday, the officials also asked Carafano about the new administration's approach to the Iran nuclear deal, according to an official.

Eastern European diplomats at the meeting sought to drive home the importance of ensuring that any U.S. rapprochement with Russia did not come at the expense of NATO's most vulnerable members, particularly small Baltic countries living in the shadow of a newly assertive Russia. They said they expected Washington to uphold U.S. pledges made at NATO summits in Warsaw and Wales, reaffirming commitments to defend Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland in the face of mounting Russian aggression.

Alarmed at Trump's comments as a candidate, in which he vowed to ditch or “renegotiate” the Iran nuclear agreement and praised Russian President Vladimir Putin, Western diplomats fear that if Trump makes good on his campaign rhetoric, he will trigger a dramatic rift in America's relations with European allies not seen since the run-up to the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq.

U.S. lawmakers say the Trump team has yet to explain its plans on the Iran nuclear accord, but Republicans expect the new administration to take a much tougher line toward Tehran.

Although Trump has broken with GOP orthodoxy on foreign policy in some areas, he is firmly in line with the Republican Party establishment when it comes to the Iran deal. The issue is likely to be a top priority for the new president and Republican-controlled Congress.

European officials are also expressing growing alarm at Trump's public expressions of admiration for Putin, whose forces launched a massive new round of airstrikes this week on eastern Aleppo, in Syria, hours after a reportedly congenial phone conversation with Trump.

In the coming days, Britain, Germany and other European governments intend to press Trump's team to preserve the Iran deal, to reaffirm its support for NATO and to challenge Russia's aggressive policies from Syria to Ukraine.