Ankara.- US President Donald Trump once again criticized his European allies on Tuesday for refusing to help the United States in its offensive against Iran, and questioned why Washington is spending “hundreds of billions of dollars” on NATO, following his arrival at the allies’ summit in Ankara.
Trump spoke in this way about the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, and France, countries that “refused to help” the United States when their support was requested for the “military operation in Iran,” during a media appearance after meeting in Ankara with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
“In a way, I was testing people, to see if they would be there. We helped them, but I’m not sure they would be there for us,” Trump said.
“Why are we spending hundreds of billions of dollars on them, when they are not there for us afterwards?” asked the Republican leader, who thus once again showed his discontent with the refusal of European allies to intervene in the Middle East conflict or in the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz until the armed confrontation was brought to an end.
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When asked for his opinion on the Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, whom he also recently attacked on social media, Trump said he believes she is “a good person,” although he added that the conservative leader “made a mistake” regarding Iran that “spoiled their relationship.”
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“She wasn’t there for us and that didn’t make me very happy,” noted the American president, who last Sunday posted on his social network, Truth Social, a photo with Meloni and the message: “We need a restraining order.”
The distancing between Trump, Meloni, and other European leaders is one of the topics that will focus attention at the NATO summit being held between today and tomorrow, Wednesday, where Atlantic allies hope to show their progress in increasing military spending and assuming greater defense capabilities in the face of the redistribution of United States resources.
