quarta-feira, 1 de abril de 2026
‘Get your own oil’: Trump launches tirade against Europe for not joining Iran war
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‘Get your
own oil’: Trump launches tirade against Europe for not joining Iran war
Many
countries in Europe have called the conflict illegal, with some blocking
Israeli and US planes from moving weapons through their airspace
Oliver
Holmes, Angela Giuffrida, Stephen Burgen and Andrew Roth
Wed 1 Apr
2026 01.06 BST
Donald
Trump has launched a tirade against European countries that refused to join his
war against Iran, calling out the UK and France, as transatlantic relations
soured from the spiralling conflict that has wreaked havoc on the global
economy.
On his
Truth Social website, the US president told governments worried about fuel
prices to “go get your own oil” by force from the Gulf, comments that sent oil
prices even higher.
Later on
Tuesday, Trump said US forces would end operations in Iran “very soon,” evoking
a timeline of two to three weeks as his administration pursues talks with
Iranian authorities.
Trump
also told reporters that the responsibility for keeping the strait of Hormuz
open will rest with countries that rely on it. “That’s not for us … That’ll be
for whoever’s using the strait.”
Karoline
Leavitt, the White House press secretary, announced Tuesday that Trump will
give an address to the US to “provide an important update on Iran”.
In a
tentative sign of a more proactive European pushback to the war, it was
revealed on Tuesday that France had blocked Israeli planes from flying weapons
through its airspace while Italy refused last-minute permission for US bombers
to land in Sicily.
Spain has
already denied the US use of its bases and airspace for the war, and on Tuesday
Madrid’s defence minister said the country would not “accept lectures from
anyone”. The UK, meanwhile, has allowed the US to use its bases for a war its
government says is illegal, but has nonetheless received public admonishment
from Trump.
In his
Tuesday posts, Trump said “all of those countries that can’t get jet fuel
because of the strait of Hormuz, like the United Kingdom, which refused to get
involved in the decapitation of Iran”, should buy US oil instead.
He
suggested they should also “build up some delayed courage, go to the Strait,
and just TAKE IT”. The US secretary of defence, Pete Hegseth, repeated the
call, saying there were countries that “ought be prepared to step up on this
critical waterway as well”.
“Last
time I checked, there was supposed to be a big, bad Royal Navy that could be
prepared to do things like that as well,” Hegseth said calling out the UK
during a press conference on Tuesday morning.
Plans to
control the strait of Hormuz by force are widely considered high risk and
unrealistic, and European countries have been working for years on plans to buy
more US oil.
In a
separate post, Trump criticised France because it “wouldn’t let planes headed
to Israel, loaded up with military supplies, fly over French territory”,
writing that the country had been “VERY UNHELPFUL”. The office of the French
president, Emmanuel Macron, said it was “surprised” by Trump’s tweet, saying
Paris “has not changed its position since day one” of the war.
The US
secretary of state, Marco Rubio, said that after the war, Washington would look
at whether Nato has “served this country well”, or whether it has become a
“one-way street where America is simply in a position to defend Europe, but
when we need the help of our allies, they’re going to deny us basing rights,
and they’re going to deny us overflight.”
Global
frustration with the economic fallout is growing. The Irish taoiseach, Micheál
Martin, said on Tuesday that the oil supply shock caused by the US-Israeli
attack on Iran was “probably the worst ever”.
With
average US gas prices passing $4 a gallon for the first time in four years,
Trump now also faces the prospect of a domestic backlash to a one-month
conflict he is unable to end with violence, threats or flattery.
While
Washington has said it is negotiating hard with Iran to reach a deal, Tehran’s
ruling regime has been lukewarm, seeing the crisis as an existential fight.
On
Tuesday, the Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian, said Iran had the “necessary
will” to end the war “provided that essential conditions are met”, in
particular guarantees that the conflict would not be repeated.
Spot
prices for Brent crude dropped below $104 a barrel for the first time since
Friday on Pezeshkian’s remarks, as markets rallied on even the outside
potential for negotiations to end the war. Trump on Tuesday also told NBC News
the war was “coming to an end”, although he did not say how that would happen.
On
Tuesday, blasts were heard in the Saudi Arabian capital, Riyadh, and Tehran
attacked a fully loaded Kuwaiti oil tanker in the Gulf. US strikes also hit the
city of Isfahan, home to one of Iran’s main nuclear sites, sending a huge
fireball into the sky. The US announced it had begun using B-52 bombers to
strike targets in Iran, indicating a level of air superiority over Iran that
would allow the military to operate without fear of pilots being shot down.
The
conflict has killed more than 3,000 people, and governments outside the region
are focused on the economic shocks at a time of high inflation, slow growth and
a cost of living crisis in many countries.
Trump has
been openly upset with Iran closing off the strait of Hormuz, even though the
closure was widely predicted, even before the war, if there were an all-out
assault on Tehran.
Pakistan
and China also have released a joint five-part plan to negotiate an end to the
war and reopen the strait of Hormuz. It is not clear if that proposal is linked
to the US’s recent diplomatic messaging to Iran through Pakistan, which has
good relations with both countries.
This
week, Trump warned that if a ceasefire was not reached “shortly”, the US would
broaden its offensive, including by “obliterating” Iran’s power stations and
fresh water plants, attacks that legal scholars say would probably be war
crimes.
As the
war with Iran continued, Israel stepped up its attack in Lebanon, a country it
reinvaded this month and which it now plans to permanently occupy, according to
its defence minister.
Israel
Katz on Tuesday said the military would occupy a swathe of southern Lebanon and
maintain control over the entire area up to the Litani River, which is about
30km (20 miles) inside Lebanon. Israeli forces would stay even after the
current war with Hezbollah militants ended, he said.
Israel
would block Lebanese people from returning to their homes there, he added, and
Arab villages near the frontier would be demolished in the same way Israel
demolished neighbourhoods in Gaza, where it is accused of committing a
genocide.
While
European powers have not taken effective measures to hold back Israeli and US
attacks, the moves by Spain, France and Italy over the past few days suggest
there are pushes to take a more proactive approach.
Margarita
Robles, the Spanish defence minister, said on Tuesday that the US and Israel
“can’t be the ones who, without anyone’s support, not even of their allies,
decide what type of rules or peace apply in the world”.
Speaking
to congress, she said: “Our position is supported by the majority of people,
and not just Spanish but European.”
Spain
felt no obligation to join an illegal war whose objectives, 30 days into the
conflict, have yet to be defined, she added. “Two countries went to war and
expected us to join them,” she said, adding: “We don’t accept lectures from
anyone in regard to our commitment to peace.”
Reports
that Italy had denied permission for US military planes carrying weapons for
the war in Iran to land in Sicily suggested fraying nerves even from stalwart
European allies. It was dismissed by Rome as a procedural issue.
In Italy,
the Corriere della Sera newspaper reported that “some US bombers” had been
blocked from landing at Sigonella, one of seven US navy bases in Italy. A
source at the Italian defence ministry confirmed the report, but said that use
of the base had been denied because the US sought authorisation to land only
while the aircraft were already en route to Sicily, meaning there was not
enough time to seek approval in parliament, as required under law.
It is
unclear how significant the incident was. The office of Italy’s far-right prime
minister, Giorgia Meloni, issued a statement on Tuesday denying that the move
had caused “critical issues or frictions” with international partners, and said
relations with the US were “solid and based on full and loyal cooperation”.
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