President Donald Trump said on Friday that he rejected an offer from NATO to help secure the Strait of Hormuz, after Iran declared the vital shipping route reopened.
Posting on his Truth Social platform, Trump said the U.S.-led alliance had contacted him to ask whether assistance was needed following recent tensions in the region.
“Now that the Hormuz Strait situation is over, I received a call from NATO asking if we would need some help. I told them to stay away, unless they just want to load up their ships with oil,” Trump wrote.
He added that NATO had been “useless when needed,” describing the alliance as a “paper tiger.”
The remarks come after Iran signalled that the strategically important waterway—through which a significant share of the world’s oil supply passes—had been reopened.
