Russia is mocking US President Donald Trump as newspapers celebrate his “long and costly” war.
Today’s Russian newspapers said, “The events in Iran show that Russia cannot count on any diplomatic agreements with the US,” and also added: “You should not cross red lines. One red line was that you should not jeopardize the geopolitical interests of the USSR”.
He also said that the US war in Iran is “long, punishing, and very costly”. The Russian daily newspaper, Kommersant, reported: “Trump wanted to strangle Tehran, but he has tightened the noose around its own neck,” with several other Russian media outlets mocking the US leader’s Middle East strategy.
The same newspaper also said that Trump had “tried to ‘strangle’ officials in Tehran, but instead he ‘tightened the noose around their necks’ – and even around countries that had no involvement in the US attack on Iran”.
Russian editor Steven Rosenberg translated the Kommersant article as follows: “He messed up, and destroyed everything around him, but he wants someone else to remove the wreckage and build a new structure. Of course, it’s all about him, Donald Trump. The US president drove Iran to the wall and practically forced it, for its survival, to block a major global transportation artery like the Strait of Hormuz.”
Recently, Mr Trump lashed out at Keir Starmer and other European leaders over the Iran war. He said most NATO allies have told him they are unwilling to participate in the country’s military operation.
Mr Trump angrily said his request for help in securing the Strait of Hormuz had been rejected. The President criticized NATO for doing “nothing” in “the time of need” despite the US protecting them and today (18 March) said the US could leave the security of the Strait of Hormuz to countries including Britain that have failed to respond to his demand for warships to secure the waterway.
As Mr Trump said “non-reactive” countries should get “into gear and fast”, Prime Minister Keir Starmer warned that the longer the crisis drags on, the worse the impact will be on the cost of living.
At questions from the Prime Minister, Sir Keir defended his approach, insisting he would not allow the UK military to become involved in a “widespread war”. Iran has closed the waterway to most shipping, leading to attacks on commercial vessels in the region.
He said: “I want to see this war end as soon as possible. The longer it continues, the greater the impact on the cost of living. And that’s why we intervened to support households with the cost of heating oil. The best way forward is to reach a negotiated settlement with Iran, abandoning any aspirations to develop nuclear weapons.”
Kiir has so far resisted Mr Trump’s demands to deploy the Royal Navy to the strait, although Britain already has unmanned minehunting drones in Bahrain. Defense Secretary John Healey discussed the situation with his counterparts in France, Germany, Italy and Poland.
