U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio (L) meets with France’s Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Noël Barrot on the sidelines of the G7 Foreign Ministers’ meeting with Partner Countries at the Vaux-de-Cernay Abbey in Cernay-la-Ville on March 27, 2026.
BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI / AFP
Liberal MEPs in Brussels are frustrated with seeing Ukraine used as a "bargaining chip.”
Donald Trump’s administration is deploying its usual technique for getting others on side, threatening to draw back its involvement in Ukraine if Europe doesn’t lend more of a hand in the Middle East.
Before heading to France for Friday’s meeting with G7 foreign ministers, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio criticised “a couple of the leaders in Europe who said that this [conflict in Iran] was not Europe’s war,” adding:
Ukraine isn’t our war, yet we’ve contributed more to that fight than any other country in the world.
SECRETARY RUBIO: The U.S. is constantly asked to help in wars and we have. But when we had a need, it didn’t get positive responses from NATO. A couple leaders said that Iran was not Europe’s war. Well, Ukraine isn’t our war, yet we’ve contributed more to that fight than anyone. pic.twitter.com/AEDMLBbLFQ
Washington is considering redirecting this contribution—military aid included—to the Middle East, which has no doubt grabbed the attention of officials in and around Brussels.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who is often described as Europe’s ‘bridge-builder’ with Donald Trump, stressed earlier this month that her country “is not participating and has no intention of participating” in the conflict. France’s Emmanuel Macron also said “we are not party to the conflict,” and German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius echoed: “This is not our war.”
The U.S. is especially keen for Europe to get involved in efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, saying its continued closure will be just as damaging for the continent as for itself. But German Chancellor Friedrich Merz last week told lawmakers: “As long as the war continues, we will not participate in ensuring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, for example, by military means.”
A handful of liberal MEPs have already responded angrily to Rubio’s comments. French Renew Europe MEP Nathalie Loiseau, Chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Security and Defence, said his claim Washington has contributed to the war in Ukraine more than anyone else was “false,” and that the call to arms over Iran was “insane.” Renew group leader Valérie Hayer also argued it was wrong to use Ukraine as a “bargaining chip.”
Talking on the sidelines of Friday’s meeting, European officials said they understood that the U.S. and Iran will engage in direct talks “very soon.”
Michael Curzon is a news writer for europeanconservative.com based in England’s Midlands. He is also Editor of Bournbrook Magazine, which he founded in 2019, and previously wrote for London’s Express Online. His Twitter handle is @MichaelCurzon_.
