The rebuttal was swift, emphatic — and cathartic. One by one, Donald Trump’s European allies rejected the US president’s demand to join his war in the Middle East. Leaders from Warsaw to Madrid, from Washington’s closest friends on the continent to the most Trump-sceptic, closed ranks to deliver the message: “This is not our war.”
This week’s collective refusal by Trump’s European partners of his demand to help him open the Strait of Hormuz by force — or risk a “bad” future for the Nato alliance — was remarkable for its force and unanimity. It was all the more striking after two weeks of chaotic division among the continent’s capitals over his war against Iran.
“The United States of America and Israel did not consult us prior to this war,” said German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. “The question of how Germany might become militarily involved here does not arise.”