NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said he “fully supports” US President Donald Trump’s military action against Iran and expressed confidence that “allies will eventually unite around this position”.
In an interview with CBS television, he emphasised that alliance countries have traditionally acted together, “as far as I know, we are always united”.
Rutte also admitted that some European states are still “cautious about participating in the conflict, in particular on operations to ensure the safety of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.” At the same time, he attributed this to the fact that “allies were not involved in the initial planning of the US and Israeli operation, which was done to preserve the surprise factor.”
“I understand the president’s irritation that it takes time, but I also ask for understanding – countries needed to prepare without having prior information,” the secretary-general said.
Trump himself has previously sharply criticised NATO allies, saying that without the US, the alliance is a “paper tiger”. He also accused European countries of “unwillingness to participate in the operation to unblock the Strait of Hormuz despite rising oil prices.”
Despite this, Rutte emphasised that Trump’s actions are about global security: “he is doing it to make the world safer”.
Israel and the US have been striking Iran since 28 February. US President Donald Trump has said the goal of this war is to destroy Iran’s military capabilities and prevent Tehran from developing nuclear weapons. Iran has been striking Israel and countries in the region that co-operate with the US.
Iran blocked the Strait of Hormuz after the war in the Middle East began. Up to a fifth of all offshore oil exports (about 20 million barrels per day), as well as liquefied natural gas, used to pass through the strait. The fallout from this volume has already sent oil prices soaring and forced the International Energy Agency to open up reserves, releasing the largest volume in history of about 400 million barrels to the market. The U.S. has also temporarily lifted sanctions on Russian oil on ships at sea, as well as Iranian oil.