Washington’s allies have reportedly been left confused by Donald Trump’s calls for help in his war with Iran.
Politico reported on Wednesday that four anonymous European government officials said that efforts to reopen the strategic Strait of Hormuz, which has been effectively blocked by Iran, have been hampered by Trump’s “confusing” messaging.
Although Trump has for weeks publicly called on members of the NATO military alliance to help secure the strait, the officials cited by Politico said that the US has not made any formal requests for allies to send equipment to the Middle East.
One official, cited by the outlet, said: “The US has asked us to take care of and defend our own countries, take care of supporting Ukraine… and now [the] Middle East and global supply chains…[it’s] absurdly incoherent to put it mildly.”
In response to US-Israeli strikes on Iran that began on February 28, Tehran has effectively blocked the strategic Strait of Hormuz, through which around 20% of the world’s oil supply and significant volumes of liquefied natural gas transited before the conflict.
The blockade has led to a steep jump in global oil prices, prompting governments around the world to release hundreds of millions of barrels of emergency oil reserves in an effort to soften the economic blow.
‘This war violates international law’
With the exception of defensive or evacuation operations, Washington’s NATO allies have been reluctant to become involved in the conflict, citing lessons learned from the drawn out wars in Iraq and Afghanistan over the last couple of decades as well as questions regarding the legality of US-Israeli strikes on Iran.
In one of the most scathing criticisms of Washington’s strikes offered by the head of state of a NATO ally, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier said on Tuesday that “this war violates international law”, adding: “There is little doubt that, in any case, the justification of an imminent attack on the US does not hold water.”
Last week, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Japan and the UK issued a joint statement expressing their “readiness to contribute to appropriate efforts to ensure safe passage through the Strait [of Hormuz],” without offering many details.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk previously ruled out sending troops to Iran, saying that the conflict does not directly affect Poland’s national security and that Warsaw “has other tasks” within NATO, such as ensuring the security of the Baltic region.