German president says Iran war 'disastrous mistake'
· Toronto Sun
In a strident rebuke of U.S. President Donald Trump, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier slammed the United States for going to war with Iran, calling it a “violation of international law” and a “disastrous mistake.”
Speaking in front of German diplomats in Berlin, Steinmeier bashed Trump for pulling the plug on the nuclear deal with Iran — a deal he helped negotiate while serving as Germany’s foreign minister from 2013 to 2017.
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‘Avoidable’ war
“This war is also — and please bear with me when I say this, as someone directly involved — a politically disastrous mistake,” Steinmeier said. “And that’s what frustrates me the most. A truly avoidable, unnecessary war, if its goal was to stop Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.”
Steinmeier went further, adding that the Iran war will cause an irreconcilable diplomatic rupture between Germany and the U.S., and that Germany must seek more autonomy to defend itself and Europe.
“The current U.S. administration has a different worldview to ours: One that shows no regard for established rules, partnership or hard-won trust. We cannot change that. We have to deal with it … Just as I believe there will be no going back to the way things were before Feb. 24, 2022, in our relationship with Russia, so I believe there will be no going back to the way things were before Jan. 20, 2025, in transatlantic relations. The rupture is too deep,” he said, referring to Trump’s second Inauguration Day.
Germany must defend itself: Steinmeier
He added Germany “must become the backbone of conventional defence in Europe. In the technological sphere, our dependence on the U.S. is even greater. This makes it all the more important that we do not simply accept this situation.”
As president, Steinmeir’s role is mostly ceremonial, which allows him to speak more freely than politicians of more consequence, but his latest remarks will no doubt put pressure on German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who has been more cautious about his comments on the war. In recent days, however, Merz has criticized what he calls a lack of exit strategy from the U.S. and Israel.