US President Calls on Allies to Defend Themselves

The American president believes that US allies should “learn to defend themselves.” He urges them to go get “their own oil” by taking back control of the Strait of Hormuz.

“Go get your own oil!” On his Truth Social network, Donald Trump called on countries that did not help the US in Iran to take control of the Strait of Hormuz on their own terms.

“To all these countries that cannot get kerosene because of the Strait of Hormuz, like the UK which refused to participate in the decapitation of Iran, I have a suggestion: first, buy from the US, we have plenty; secondly, take courage, go to the strait, and take it!” wrote the American president.

“You will have to learn to defend yourselves, the US will no longer be there to help you, just as you were not there for us. Iran is, in a way, anti. The hardest part is done,” he added.

On his Truth Social network, Donald Trump also stated that France “has been very uncooperative” and cautioned that “the US will remember.”

The American president complained that France “banned the overflight of its territory to planes carrying military equipment bound for Israel. They have been very uncooperative facing the ‘butcher of Iran’.” He also warned that the “US will remember,” without further detail.

He has repeatedly claimed that the world’s leading power, which produces much of the oil it consumes and imports the rest mainly from Canada and Mexico, is not affected by Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz. However, many Asian countries now face a major energy crisis. The US is nonetheless impacted by the rise in prices.

End of Conflict Before Possible Strait Reopening?

In peacetime, around 20% of global crude oil and liquefied natural gas transit through the Strait of Hormuz. The near-blockade of this strategic passage since the start of the war in Iran has caused a surge in energy prices worldwide.

According to the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday, Donald Trump reportedly told his advisers that he preferred to halt his military campaign, believing that forcing the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz would extend the conflict “beyond his four to six week schedule.”

The newspaper reports that Washington would like to try to diplomatically persuade Tehran to unblock this strategic passage, through which a fifth of the world’s hydrocarbons usually pass. In case this strategy fails, Donald Trump could seek assistance from European and Gulf allies to force the strait’s reopening, according to US officials cited by the media.