Major allies have no intention of getting directly involved in Donald Trump’s war on Iran—and are telling him so bluntly.
The response to the president’s demands for military help to reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz shipping lane has ranged from skepticism to “Hell, no,” sources familiar with the diplomatic talks told Axios.
The narrow passage between Iran and Oman through which a fifth of the world’s oil passes has been closed off by Iran as a retaliatory measure since U.S. and Israel began bombing the Middle Eastern country on Feb. 28. The closure of the Strait has resulted in a worldwide oil crisis, with crude oil prices rising past $100 a barrel and gas prices surging in the U.S.
Trump has insisted that the multibillion-dollar war in Iran is going well and will be over soon, while simultaneously demanding that multiple countries, such as U.K., France, Japan, Canada, and even China, immediately help the U.S in resolving the Strait of Hormuz crisis and free up the trapped Gulf oil.
The president has even warned that if NATO countries do not help the U.S. with the mess Trump created, the future of the military alliance could be in danger.
Despite these threats, multiple countries have rejected the idea of sending in their own warships toward Iran to try to reopen the Strait.
Trump spoke with U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday to try to convince them to help the U.S.
The day after meeting with Trump, Starmer ruled out the U.K. getting dragged into a conflict in the Middle East. “While taking the necessary action to defend ourselves and our allies, we will not be drawn into the wider war,” Starmer said on Monday.
The U.K. is reported to have circulated a draft plan for a multinational task force and shared it with the U.S. However, the plan does not include all the countries Trump wants to join in with the efforts to help reopen the Strait, and it is unclear how such a coalition would work.
“It’s a mess. A lot of people are confused,” a European diplomat told Axios.
A source told Axios that “Macron didn’t give a final no, but at the moment it’s a no” with regard to France helping reopen the Strait.
Germany, another key NATO ally, said that the military alliance does not intend to get involved in the war that Trump has struggled to justify even starting.
“This war has nothing to do with NATO. It’s not NATO’s war,” Stefan Kornelius, a spokesperson for German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, said Monday. ”NATO is a defensive alliance, an alliance for the defense of its territory.”
Trump lashed out at the NATO countries that refused to join the Iran war while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday.
“We’re always there for NATO. We’re helping them with Ukraine. It’s got an ocean in between us, doesn’t affect us, but we helped them,” Trump said. “Whether we get support or not, I can say this, and I said it to them: We will remember.”
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.
