Washington : US President Donald Trump on Friday branded NATO allies “cowards” for not heeding his demand for military assistance against Iran to control the Strait of Hormuz shipping route.
On Thursday, six major international powers, including Britain, France, Germany and Japan said they were ready to “contribute to appropriate efforts” to secure the Strait of Hormuz.
But they have not formally committed to any mission to work in the crucial waterway — while other allies such as Germany and Italy have ruled out doing anything before a truce in the Middle East war. None of the countries Trump has called on to help was consulted before the US-Israeli mission started.
“They didn’t want to join the fight to stop a Nuclear Powered Iran. Now that fight is Militarily WON, with very little danger for them, they complain about the high oil prices they are forced to pay, but don’t want to help open the Strait of Hormuz, a simple military maneuver that is the single reason for the high oil prices.
An effective Iranian blockade has paralyzed commercial shipping through the crucial maritime chokepoint, which in peacetime sees a fifth of global crude oil and liquefied natural gas pass through it.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said, “Without the US, NATO is a paper tiger!” He accused member nations of refusing to join what he described as a fight to stop a “nuclear-powered Iran,” adding that the conflict had now been “militarily won” with minimal risk to them.
The US President complained that NATO countries did not want to join the fight against Iran, yet still complained about high oil prices. He specifically pointed to the Strait of Hormuz, calling it “a simple military manoeuvre” and “the single reason for the high oil prices,” and said allies were unwilling to help despite what he described as low risk.
French President Emmanuel Macron said after a European Union summit in Brussels that defending international law and promoting de-escalation was “the best we can do,” adding, We are not party to the conflict and, therefore, France will never take part in operations to open or liberate the Strait of Hormuz in the current context.”
