Trump warns NATO, threatens to delay summit with China

New York City – Lee Byung-chul, correspondent for The Financial News,reported that U.S. President Donald Trump warned European countries to actively join a possible war with the Islamic Republic of Iran. He also said that if China does not cooperate on this issue, the U.S.-China summit scheduled for the end of this month could be postponed. His remarks came after he asked South Korea, China, Japan, France, and the United Kingdom (UK) to dispatch warships to help normalize the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of global crude oil shipments pass.
In an interview with the Financial Times (FT) on the 15th local time, Trump said, "If America’s allies do not cooperate in keeping the Strait of Hormuz open, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) will face a very bad future." He added, "It is only natural that countries that benefit from the Strait of Hormuz help ensure that bad things do not happen there," arguing that "unlike the United States of America (U.S.), Europe and China are heavily dependent on Gulf oil."
Trump also said he would watch to see whether NATO helps the U.S. this time. "Ukraine is thousands of miles away from us, but we helped them," he said. "Now we will see whether they help us." As possible forms of assistance, he mentioned deploying minesweepers and European special forces.
He expressed hope that China would also cooperate in lifting the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. "China must help as well, because it gets 90% of its oil from this strait," Trump said. He stressed that the issue should be resolved before the U.S.-China summit to be held in Beijing at the end of this month. "Two weeks is a long time," he said, adding, "I want to know China’s position before then." He went on to say that his visit to China itself could be delayed, noting, "It could be postponed."
The previous day, Trump wrote on the social media platform Truth Social that "many countries, especially those affected by the Islamic Republic of Iran’s attempt to block the Strait of Hormuz, will send warships to keep the strait open and safe," specifically naming South Korea, China, Japan, the UK, and France.
U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright also said that it would be "quite logical" for a broad coalition of countries to work together to reopen the strait. In an interview with the American Broadcasting Company (ABC), he stated, "Every country in the world depends on (energy) commodities that pass through the Strait of Hormuz. At the very top of that list is China, followed by Japan, South Korea, and all the countries of Asia."
On the same day, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), citing multiple sources in the U.S. administration, reported that the administration plans to announce this week that several countries have agreed to form a coalition to escort ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz. However, it added that discussions are still underway on whether the escort operations would begin only after hostilities cease or could start even before that.


pride@fnnews.com Reporter Lee Byung-chul Reporter