analysis
In view of the loss of control in Iran, Donald Trump is increasingly vehemently calling for military support from allies. In Berlin, Chancellor Friedrich Merz no longer just seems desperate, but also annoyed.
March 17, 2026, 05:11March 17, 2026, 05:22
Bastian Brauns, Johannes Bebermeier / t-online
Donald Trump probably didn’t want to seem needy when he was asked by reporters in Washington on Monday about the support of allies in Iran. “We don’t need anyone,” says Trump. After all, the United States is the most powerful country in the world, with the strongest military.
In recent days, the US President has repeatedly called on NATO allies to militarily secure the important trade route, the Strait of Hormuz. Why? “I’m not doing this because we need them,” Trump claims, “but to see how they react.”
If you follow the American president’s words, you might think that the war against Iran and the economic consequences of the blockade of the strait are a case of alliance according to Article 5 of the NATO Treaty. This regulates the allies’ obligation to provide assistance in order to restore security in the alliance’s territory. Trump doesn’t care much about that. He claimed on Monday:
“I’ve been saying it for years that if we ever needed her, she wouldn’t be there.”
Trump demands allegiance when he sees fit. Alliances, contracts or agreements seem annoying. That’s probably why he’s suddenly mixing up the aid to Ukraine, which was significantly reduced under his government, with his expectations of the European states in the war against Iran. If his wishes are not met, he predicts “a bad future” for NATO. It’s not just a threat, it’s blackmail. But it apparently has little effect in Europe. There seems to be very little understanding of Trump’s rhetoric, especially in Germany.
Berlin seems increasingly desperate
While the US President is spreading his list of demands on numerous channels, the German government around Chancellor Friedrich Merz appears increasingly desperate. Because the US President obviously still has no plan for how the Iran war should continue. The fact that Trump now wants to shift the blame onto his alliance partners even seems to be annoying in the Berlin Chancellery.
When Friedrich Merz sat next to Trump in the Oval Office shortly after the start of the war in early March, the Chancellor assured the US President of his support for “getting rid of this terrible terror regime.” But he also said back then that the war was of course damaging to economies and that everyone hoped“that this war ends as soon as possible”.
Friedrich Merz seems frustrated by the Trump administration’s lack of plans in Iran.Image: keystone
How this is supposed to happen, what exactly the plan is for Iran – these were the questions with which Merz traveled to Washington. And Trump’s answers clearly did not convince him. The Chancellor has recently made this increasingly clear. Last week he said that “with every day of the war more questions arise.” He is concerned “that there is obviously no common plan for how this war can be quickly brought to a convincing end.”
“This is not a NATO war”
The fact that Trump is now trying to drag NATO and thus Germany into the mess in the Middle East is met with very little enthusiasm in Berlin. When asked about Trump’s threat against NATO, government spokesman Stefan Kornelius initially tried to clear the whole thing up at the federal press conference on Monday morning with a reference to the customs of international politics and order.
“This war has nothing to do with NATO. This is not a NATO war. NATO is an alliance for the defense of alliance territory.”
A mandate is missing, says Kornelius. Knowing full well that experience shows that Trump doesn’t care much about such procedural issues. That Trump still makes the connection to NATO? “We have taken note of this,” says the German government spokesman briefly.
How the threat may have been received in the Chancellery will become clearer with each further response from the government spokesman on Monday. Kornelius says at some point that he should remind them again that the USA said at the beginning of the war “that European help was neither necessary nor desired.”
EU representatives also made similar comments to the German government. Vice Commission President Kaja Kallas also made it clear that the US government’s Iran adventure was “not our war”.
Merz: I wish I had the necessary respect
In the afternoon in Berlin, the Chancellor himself made it abundantly clear. When Friedrich Merz stood in front of the capital’s journalists after an inaugural visit by Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten to the Chancellery, he said that he had always pointed out that the risks of this war were “big, very big”. There will be no military solution to the war, only a political solution. He can only call on everyone involved to look for them. Germany is ready to take part.
When asked about Trump’s threats against NATO, Merz pointed out that it was he who worked to ensure that the alliance partners now spend five percent of their economic power on defense. Just as the US President rightly demanded. “That’s why I hope,” says Merz, “that we treat each other with the necessary respect in the alliance here.” It is a clear accusation and an unusually clear criticism of Trump’s rhetoric.
Merz meeting with Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten.Image: keystone
And the Chancellor was also uncompromising on this issue that day. The USA and Israel, says Merz, “did not consult us before this war either.” There was never a joint decision about whether.
“That’s why the question doesn’t arise as to how Germany will contribute militarily here. We won’t do it.”
Berlin does not want to expand the EU naval mission
This also applies to a proposal that EU Foreign Affairs Representative Kaja Kallas made on Monday morning before the meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels: namely to expand the mandate of the EU naval operation “Aspides” in the Middle East in order to be able to protect the Strait of Hormuz with armed force.
The federal government is also not enthusiastic about this initiative. This is also because she is convinced that the Strait of Hormuz cannot be secured with armed ships alone. According to the analysis, Iran could still continue to attack there from the land.
“As long as the war continues,” says Merz, “we will not take part in using military means to ensure free shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.” To date, there is no known concept as to how such an operation could even succeed. The EU foreign ministers also rejected the expansion of the naval operation on Monday afternoon in Brussels.
Trump admits misjudgment
During his public appearance in Washington, Donald Trump even openly admitted that he did not expect Iran to attack its own neighboring states. «Nobody expected this. We were shocked,” Trump said on Monday.
How desperate the situation in the White House is in view of the beginning of global economic upheaval becomes clearer with every day of the war. Trump is not only calling on allied states to keep the Strait of Hormuz clear. The president is even trying to put pressure on his biggest rival, China, an ally of Iran.
In an interview with the Financial Times over the weekend, Trump said he expected China to help clear the strait before traveling to Beijing for a summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. The meeting between the two powerful heads of state is actually scheduled for the end of March or beginning of April. “We could postpone it,” Trump said, without giving any further reasons.
Nevertheless, after Trump’s statements, the US government apparently does not want to admit that it is dependent on support from Beijing. Trump’s Finance Minister Scott Bessent therefore only speaks of “logistical reasons” regarding a possible postponement of the meeting with China’s President Xi. On Tuesday night, the signs that Trump did not want to travel to Beijing during the ongoing war became clearer.
It could be the first indication that Trump and his administration themselves are realizing that blackmail isn’t working so well this time – whether with rivals or allies. (t-online/con)
Sources used:
- Own research and observations on site