The US said yesterday that Europe remains Washington’s “partner of first resort” despite a US strategic pivot to Asia, but it urged Europe to pull its weight.

In a twin effort to reassure Europe about the historic US commitment to the continent, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Secretary of Defence Leon Panetta delivered carefully calibrated messages of support.

Hot foreign policy issues such as Iran, Afghanistan and Syria also loomed large over the 48th annual Munich Security Conference, a gathering of world leaders, ministers and top brass.

In a speech at a roundtable talk with Panetta, Clinton pledged cooperative efforts for a united and secure Europe, mutual economic recovery, an “agile” security alliance, and a democratic Middle East along the Mediterranean.

The chief US diplomat also urged her European partners in the southern German city of Munich to work together in meeting “the opportunities that lie ahead” in the Asia-Pacific region.

Forced to make tough choices in tight budgetary times, the United States is shifting its military priorities to Asia and the Middle East – even if it has pulled its troops out of Iraq and begins a drawdown in Afghanistan.

Clinton voiced confidence that Europe has “the will and the means” to cut runaway debt, build “the necessary firewalls” to protect the euro and take steps to spur growth.