Trump clashes with Nato countries over refusal to help reopen Strait of Hormuz
President Donald Trump has expressed his anger at a lack of help from Nato countries cooperating with the US to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway through which more than 20 percent of the world's crude oil is normally transported.
On Monday, he announced that "numerous countries have told me they're on the way", without naming any publicly.
"Some are very enthusiastic about it, and some countries that we've helped for many, many years, we've protected them from horrible outside sources, and they weren't that enthusiastic. And the level of enthusiasm matters to me," he said.
Experts have warned that escorting tankers or undertaking any mission in the strait would be a "very dangerous mission".
European leaders in particular have made it clear they do not want to risk moves that would drag them into the wider war with Iran - particularly as they view the US-Israeli attacks on the Islamic Republic as illegal and without a United Nations mandate in the first place.
Germany, France and the UK are among the countries that have already rejected getting involved.
Trump said he was "surprised" and "not happy" with the UK, in particular.
Trump also suggested that because the US funds the bulk of Nato, and has also been funding the bulk of Ukraine's defences against Russia, Brussels owes Washington.
"You can ask [Russian President Vladimir] Putin. Putin fears us. He has no fear of Europe whatsoever," Trump said.
When asked by a reporter whether he had discussed the matter with French President Emmanuel Macron, Trump said he had done so but that he did not "do a hard sell on them".
"Because my attitude is, we don't need anybody," Trump said, seemingly walking back his remarks from moments earlier.
"We're the strongest nation in the world. We have the strongest military by far. We don't need them. But it's interesting. I'm almost doing it in some cases, not because we need them, because I want to find out how they react, because I've been saying for years that [if] we ever did need them, they won't be there."
'It's their territory'
Two weeks into the US-Israeli war on Iran, Iran has effectively choked off the maritime passage, barring a few select vessels from friendly nations.
The strait is home to anywhere from 20-25 percent of the global seaborne oil trade, amounting to around $600bn annually. It also transports about 20 percent of the global liquefied natural gas supply.
For days, Trump has pleaded with international powers to send warships to the strait to escort commercial tankers, after oil shot up well past $100 a barrel, creating ripple effects at petrol pumps around the world.
But any such move by any country would undoubtedly be perceived by the Iranians as a provocation.
"I’m demanding that these countries come in and protect their own territory - because it is their territory," Trump told reporters on Sunday aboard Air Force One.
"They should come and they should help us protect it. You could make the case that maybe we shouldn’t even be there at all, because we don’t need it. We have a lot of oil. We’re the number one producer anywhere in the world, times two," he said.
'Make your own decision'
Trump recounted another conversation with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, slamming him for consulting with his advisers on whether to assist US efforts.
"I said, 'You don't need to meet with a team. You're the prime minister, you can make your own decision. Why do you have to meet with your team to find out whether or not you're gonna send some minesweepers to us or to step up?'"
"There are no policy solutions to a prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz," former White House energy adviser Bob McNally told the CBS News programme "60 Minutes" on Sunday.
"The tools range from marginal, through symbolic, to deeply unwise," he added.
Oil-rich Gulf states, which are bearing the brunt of Iran's retaliatory attacks, given they host a plethora of US assets, have pointed to the Trump administration's lack of planning and preparedness for a weeks-long, if not months-long, war.
Trump on Monday said he predicted Hormuz would be shut down by Iran, even though he also insisted that its navy has been "obliterated" and thereby ineffective.
"I knew the strait would be a weapon," he told reporters.
He offered no explanation for failing to take steps to prevent such an outcome, particularly as Americans are hit with soaring energy prices that will likely be reflected on the midterm election ballots in November.
At the same time, Trump seemingly did not predict how aggressively his Gulf partners would be targeted.
"[Iran] hit Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait. Nobody expected that. We were shocked," he said.
Kuwait has so far had the most fatalities on its territory - a total of 11, including six American soldiers, four Kuwaiti soldiers, and one Iranian child.
Trump also insisted on Monday that the Iranians were talking to the Americans, and that they want to make a deal, but so far Iran has publicly denied any negotiations, going so far as to say they will not negotiate with the US until certain preconditions are met.
This article was sourced from Middle East Eye.
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