Western allies push back on Trump call for NATO help to reopen Hormuz
CNA
In Berlin, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's spokesman said the Iran war has "nothing to do with NATO".
LONDON: North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allies and other Western nations pushed back on Monday (Mar 16) on United States President Donald Trump's demand that alliance members help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the critical conduit for crude oil that Iran has effectively closed.
United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer said London was working with allies to craft a "viable" plan to reopen the waterway, but ruled out a NATO mission, while Berlin insisted it was "not NATO's war".
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski noted the country's president had already "ruled out the participation of the Polish Armed Forces in this operation" as Spanish Defence Minister Margarita Robles said Madrid was "absolutely not" mulling a military contribution.
The lukewarm response from European capitals came after Japan and Australia voiced similar sentiments earlier on Monday, with Canberra noting it would not be sending a navy ship to the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump over the weekend called on countries including China, France, Japan, South Korea and Britain to send warships to escort tankers through the strait, warning that refusing would be "very bad for the future of NATO".
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"While starting a war is easy, it cannot be won with a few tweets. We will not relent until making you sorry for this grave miscalculation," says Iranian security chief Ali Larijani.