Donald Trump has been left humiliated after a major NATO leader launched a furious swipe at America’s plan during the war with Iran.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz claimed the US “obviously went into this war without any strategy”. He said during a discussion with students at a high school in Marsberg in the Sauerland region: “Especially since the Iranians obviously negotiate very skillfully – or do not negotiate very skillfully. An entire nation is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership.”
During the discussion, Mr Merz also said: “Because the Iranians are obviously stronger than previously thought, and the Americans clearly lack a truly convincing strategy in the negotiations.”
He also added these are the reasons why “it’s all the more difficult to end the conflict now”.
This is not the first time Mr Trump’s and his NATO allies’ opinions seem to diverge. Earlier this month, Mr Trump even said he was ready to reconsider the US’s membership of the alliance after the conflict, as he said: “Oh yes, I would say [it’s] beyond reconsideration. I was never swayed by NATO. I always knew they were a paper tiger, and Putin knows that too, by the way.”
Mr Trump also rebuked Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer for refusing to get involved in the US-Israeli war against Iran, and suggested the Royal Navy was not ready.
He then added that he had set “very disappointing” NATO allies a deadline to send warships to the Strait of Hormuz, something that was considered an “ultimatum” by European diplomats.
The PM’s spokesperson said: “The UK position is clear and isn’t going to change… It’s a long standing one. It’s an unchanged one, and it will remain the case.”
An internal Pentagon email set out options for Donald Trump’s administration to punish NATO allies for refusing to join the US-Israeli strikes against Iran. The memo, first reported by Reuters, suggested reassessing US diplomatic support for “imperial possessions” such as the Falklands. The Foreign Office, however, is treating the potential shift in the US position as a “hypothetical scenario”.
