Trump slams NATO claiming it offered to help clear Strait of Hormuz after he declared it open: ‘We never needed them’
President Donald Trump tore into NATO on Friday during a speech at a rally in Arizona, alleging that the longstanding U.S.-led alliance had belatedly offered to help America clear the Strait of Hormuz, the vital oil-shipping lane that’s been reopened for the time being as negotiations continue surrounding the Iran war.
“Now that the Hormuz Strait situation is nearly over, I received a call from NATO asking if we would like some help,” Trump told the crowd at a Turning Point Action event in Phoenix.
“I told them I would have liked your help two months ago, but now I really don’t want your help anymore, because they were absolutely useless when we needed them,” Trump continued. “But actually we never needed them. They needed us.”
“If it teaches us any one thing, we have to rely on ourselves,” the president said elsewhere in his remarks. “We can’t rely on outside countries and outside sources.”
Earlier Friday, both sides in the Iran conflict announced that the strait was being reopened, though some of the details clashed.
Iran said the strait is open for all commercial vessels for the duration of the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon in the regional conflict, while President Trump wrote on social media that the strait is “fully open,” a status not “tied, in any way, to Lebanon.” The U.S. naval blockade on Iranian ports will continue, Trump wrote, until “OUR TRANSACTION WITH IRAN IS 100% COMPLETE.”
The Republican also claimed Friday that Iran had agreed to give up its enriched uranium, which the country strongly denied.
“Now that the Hormuz Strait situation is over, I received a call from NATO asking if we would need some help,” Trump added in the flurry of online updates. “I TOLD THEM TO STAY AWAY, UNLESS THEY JUST WANT TO LOAD UP THEIR SHIPS WITH OIL.”
The Independent has contacted NATO for comment.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated with new information.
