We don't need anybody: Trump fumes as allies snub call to join Hormuz mission
We don't need anybody: Trump fumes as allies snub call to join Hormuz mission
M.U.H
17/03/202613
A day after his call for US allies to help reopen the war-hit Strait of Hormuz was met with silence or outright rejection, a visibly miffed US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said Washington did not need any assistance to secure the strategic waterway.
The strait has been under siege by Iran since the outbreak of the West Asia conflict, disrupting global oil supplies and driving crude prices sharply higher.
“We don’t need anybody. We’re the strongest nation in the world. We have the strongest military by far in the world,” Trump said, repeating his criticism that North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) members won’t help the US, despite their joining the coalition, and the idea of collective defence.
Just two days earlier, Trump had urged countries to deploy warships to the Strait of Hormuz. On Monday, he stepped up the appeal, warning allies that a negative response could lead to "very bad future" for Nato, as a unified defence alliance.
However, several key US partners, including Germany, Spain and Italy, declined the request, saying they had no immediate plans to send naval forces.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Berlin had not been consulted by Washington or Israel before launching the war, adding that Germany lacked the mandate required under its Basic Law. “We do not have approval from the United Nations, the European Union or NATO,” he said.
When asked about allies' responses, and specifically, whether he expected support from France, Trump initially said, “Sure, I think he’s going to help,” but quickly added that the US did not require any assistance for the mission.
"I don't do a hard sell on them because my attitude is. We don't need anybody. We're the strongest nation in the world. We have the strongest military by far in the world. We don't need them, but it's interesting," he said.
Trump said his outreach was partly aimed at testing allies’ willingness to back the US in times of need.
"I'm almost doing it in some cases, not because we need them, but 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, not all of them, but they won't be there," he said, adding that the US has been securing the allies, spending a lot of money.
The US President also singled out the United Kingdom, claiming it had initially declined a request to deploy two aircraft carriers at the start of the conflict. According to Trump, London later offered support after “the war was essentially over,” an offer he said Washington rejected.
"I think, I think it's terrible. No, I, I was very surprised. I told him, you know, we requested two aircraft carriers which they had. And he didn't really want to do it. And then right after the war essentially ended, you know, meaning they were obliterated, he said. I would like to send the aircraft carriers, I said. I don't need them after the war has ended and won. I needed it before the war, so I was very upset with it. Not upset, I was, I was not happy with the UK," the US President added.
The US, in coordination with Israel, launched a military campaign against Iran on February 28, targeting key military and administrative infrastructure. The strikes reportedly killed Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and several senior officials, dealing a severe blow to the country’s leadership and command structure.
Iran retaliated with missile and drone strikes on Israel, while also targeting US bases, stations, and strategic interests across West Asia, significantly widening the conflict into a full-blown regional war.
Amid the escalation, Tehran moved to shut the Strait of Hormuz, which is a critical global oil artery through which nearly 20 per cent of the world’s supply passes, and attacked more than 15 vessels attempting to transit the waterway. Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, declared that the strait would remain closed, while the Iranian military warned that crude oil prices could surge to as high as USD 200 per barrel.
Trump has repeatedly said he would deploy the US Navy to escort commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz and had urged allied nations to contribute naval support. However, most allies declined the request, reflecting deep divisions over involvement in the escalating conflict.
