Europe may have to start having “fewer fancy conferences and take action,” US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said today, criticizing the response of the UK and other countries to the Strait of Hormuz crisis.
At a Pentagon press conference on the war in the Middle East, Hegceth dismissed as “foolish” steps by Britain and France aimed at shielding the future security of this strategic sea route.
The defence secretary said the US deserves allies “who are loyal” and understand that cooperation “is not a one-way street.”
His comments come amid a new escalation in transatlantic tensions.
Latest episode, an internal Pentagon memo that came out yesterday, which lays out the options available to the US to punish its NATO allies who, according to Washington, did not support US operations in the war with Iran, including suspending Spain’s participation in the alliance and revising the US position on Britain’s claim to the Falkland Islands.
US President Donald Trump has been harshly critical of NATO allies for not helping to open the Strait of Hormuz, which has been closed to navigation since the start of US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28.
A coalition of countries held talks this week in Paris and London aimed at creating an international mission led by the UK and France to keep the Straits open once the war is over.
In today’s press conference, Hegceth said: “This should not be an America-only battle. As a country, we barely use the Straits of Hormuz. Our energy doesn’t flow from there and we have plenty of energy,”
He said: “Europe and Asia have benefited from our protection for decades, but the era of free rides is over. America and the free world deserve allies who are capable, who are loyal, and who understand that being an ally is not a one-way street. It’s a two-way street.”
“We don’t rely on Europe, but they need the Straits of Hormuz much more than we do. And maybe it wants to start talking less and organising less fancy conferences and take action. This is much more her fight than ours.”
The US Secretary continued: “I know there is a lot of discussion. You saw, I would call it silly, the conference last week in Europe where they got together and discussed the possibility of finally doing something when things are finalized.” “These are not serious efforts.”
