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Former US ambassador to NATO, Ivo Daalder, said repeated threats by U.S. President Donald Trump to withdraw from NATO, as well as confrontations with America’s European allies over their refusal to join the war, have created the ‘worst crisis’ NATO has ever faced.
“The last six weeks have been extraordinarily damaging to NATO,” Daalder told Euronews’ Shona Murray.
“We see a divided NATO, which has been the goal of first the Soviet Union and then Russia for the better part of 80 years,” he said.
Daalder said Trump’s statements suggesting the U.S. might not defend NATO allies against future military aggression by Russia or other adversaries have destabilised the alliance and shaken the global order.
He added that the six‑week war against Iran has depleted U.S. military resources by burning through large stocks of interceptors and other missiles in the bombing campaign.
“A NATO that is truly at loggerheads, a NATO in which the president of the United States says, ‘I’m not going to defend you’, it is a good time to test NATO if you are sitting in Moscow,” he said.
“It’s also a good time to test what you could get away with in Taiwan if you’re sitting in Beijing, because much of the US military capability has been moved to the Gulf,” he warned.
Daalder, who served as U.S. ambassador under former President Obama from 2009 – 2013 said described the US/Iran war as a “strategic blunder of historic proportion.”
“Much of US military capabilities has been expended on this war, which turned out to be a strategic blunder of historic proportion,” he said.
His comments come as NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte is in Washington D.C. for a series of discussions including with Trump, and Secretary of State Rubio, as well as Defence Secretary, Pete Hegseth. Rutte is expected to try to salve some of the hostility which has emerged between the US and its allies in Europe.
Meanwhile, Daadler’s believes that – on the face of it – Iran holds the “upper hand” in relation to the terms of the ceasefire negotiated on Tuesday to avert all out ‘civilisational destruction.’
An agreement was made to reopen international shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz, reportedly however, permission will be required from the Iranian armed forces for vessels attempting to pass.
Iran has held the Strait hostage as part of its retaliation against the US and Israel. It’s effective closure has triggered skyrocketing gas and oil prices as well as major economic uncertainty across the globe.
The full details of how the Strait will be secured for all international shipping including the passage of Gulf oil and gas is unclear.
“The Strait of Hormuz was open before the bombing started,” Daalder said.
“Now ships may be going through. We don’t know how many. We don’t know when. We don’t know where. And in any case, the Iranians are claiming they will maintain control,” he said.
“That is a massive change in Iran’s benefit and to the detriment not only of the United States and Israel,” he said.