US Faces Tough Choices in Iran War's Next Steps

"You set things in motion but you can't control how they end up," Sir Lawrence Freedman, emeritus professor of war studies at King's College London, warns of the consequences of the US military strikes and the perilous paths ahead - on "Bloomberg This Weekend." US allies deflected President Donald Trump’s demands to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, expressing unease about getting pulled into the war in Iran.

In Brussels, European Union foreign ministers stressed that they did not want to escalate the war, treading cautiously about even redirecting an existing Red Sea naval mission to the vital passage for energy shipments. In Japan, officials said there were no plans to dispatch ships to escort stalled tankers. The UK similarly wouldn’t commit to a full naval mission, even as Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he’d explore options with allies.

“We will not be drawn into the wider war,” Starmer said Monday during a press conference in London. “Ultimately we have to open the Strait of Hormuz. That is not a simple task.”

Luxembourg’s Foreign Minister Xavier Bettel was more blunt: “Blackmail is not what I wish for.”

The responses amounted to a rebuttal of Trump, who on Sunday insisted that his allies in NATO and Asia help get oil and gas shipments moving through the Strait of Hormuz, which has been effectively closed since the US and Israel attacked Iran. Roughly one fifth of the world’s oil moves through the narrow passage. The blockade has sent energy prices soaring, leaving governments worried about inflation, economic slowdowns and even food supply disruptions. But on Monday, officials were also cautious about aiding Trump’s operations, which have prompted Tehran to spray missiles and drones across the region.

“We must not do anything that adds even more tension or escalation,” Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said in Brussels. “What we need is for the bombings and the missile launches against all countries in the Middle East to stop, and for us to return to the negotiating table.”

Trump directly called out his North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies in an interview with the Financial Times, warning that the military alliance would have a “very bad future” if its members don’t aid the US in Iran. The president’s renewed attacks on the transatlantic organization received a tepid response from European officials on Monday.

“I don’t see that NATO has decided anything in this direction or could be made responsible for the Strait of Hormuz,” said German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, speaking before an EU foreign ministers’ meeting in Brussels.

Read More: Trump Demands Help From Other Countries to Secure Hormuz

Bettel cautioned that NATO is there to react when members are attacked, not for all defensive or military requests.

“I want to remind that none of us has been directly attacked,” he said. “There are no grounds for now to invoke Article 5,” he added, referencing the alliance’s collective defense clause.

Some were still willing to at least hear Trump out if he presents NATO with a plan.

“We have to look into it and consider it,” Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys told Bloomberg TV in an interview in Brussels. “I would look for the in-depth debate within NATO.”

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski agreed: “If there is a request with NATO to discuss the issue, we will of course consider it out of respect and sympathy for our allies.”

The UK is also exploring whether it could help by deploying autonomous mine-hunting drones alongside other US allies, according to people familiar with the matter, even as it has no plans to joint a full naval mission to secure the Strait while the war is ongoing.

“We are working with all of our allies including our European partners to bring together a viable collective plan that can restore freedom of navigation in the region as quickly as possible,” Starmer said. However, he warned that deploying naval assets was “not easy” and “not straight-forward.”

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