As the global impacts of the war on Iran have spiraled beyond his control, President Donald Trump is finding that “all doors have shut” when it comes to military support from allies, says the i Paper.
While an increasingly “isolated and enraged” Trump has sought help handling the situation at the Strait of Hormuz — the closure of which has sent oil prices skyrocketing and shocked markets around the world — European leaders have been frank with their response to his requests.
“It’s not our war,” declared Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s top diplomat, at a recent summit on whether the EU should become militarily involved. United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer echoed her sentiments, saying the UK would not be drawn into “a wider war.”
“COWARDS,” responded Trump, calling NATO a “PAPER TIGER” while insisting that the endeavor would be nothing more than “a simple military maneuver.” He also posted a video of the British version of Saturday Night Live mocking Starmer.
His response is hardly surprising, as it is part of a protracted campaign he’s waged over the course of his presidencies. “Trump has often insulted European leaders,” notes the i Paper, “humiliating them not only at a personal level but also diminishing them in the eyes of their people.”
If Trump hoped to bully allied leaders into entering the war, his efforts have had the exact opposite effect.
“Not one but all doors have shut,” said Grégoire Roos, director for Europe, Russia and Eurasia at the international affairs think tank Chatham House, explaining that Britain and the EU were “relatively united” in their opposition to the war.
Some of that hesitancy has been influenced by previous experiences following the U.S into conflict. In 2003, when countries like the U.K. and Spain sent troops into Iraq to support American efforts, not only was the war itself a disaster, but countries that became involved faced terrorist reprisals as a consequence.
Now, American allies are skeptical of following the U.S. into another Middle Eastern quagmire, regardless of Trump’s bullying tactics.
While leaders across the Atlantic have previously tended to be more deferential to Trump out of hopes of avoiding his weaponized trade policies, their “newfound ability to stand up to the U.S. President” has emerged from the realization that he is going to attack them economically regardless. According to the i Paper, “It indicates a broader shift in strategy for Europe, which until recently was focused on trying to flatter Trump.”
With allies turning their backs on him, for i Paper, it appears he has pushed them too far.