British Prime Minister Keir Starmer stated on Friday that NATO serves “America’s (US) interests,” concluding a three-day visit to the Gulf aimed at strengthening the “fragile” truce in the Middle East.
The recent comments by Starmer came in response to US President Donald Trump’s recent criticisms of the Western military alliance and his threats to withdraw from it, following NATO allies’ refusal to participate in the US-Israel conflict against Iran.
“It is in America’s interests. It’s in European interests,” Starmer stated to UK broadcasters regarding the nearly 80-year-old security organisation.
“NATO is a defensive alliance, which for decades has kept us much safer than we would otherwise have been,” he continued, emphasising that European members need to do more in terms of financial contributions.
Starmer discusses the UK’s role over the Strait of Hormuz
Before departing Qatar, the final destination of his tour through the war-affected region, which also included stops in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain, Starmer spoke with Trump by phone late Thursday.
He mentioned that he conveyed “the views of the region here” to the US president, focusing primarily on the Strait of Hormuz.
“We spent most of the time on the call talking about the practical plan that’s going to be needed to get navigation through the strait and the role that the UK is playing,” Starmer added further.
He indicated that Britain is forming a coalition of over 30 nations to develop a diplomatic and military strategy to facilitate the movement of vessels through the waterway.
This route was expected to be reopened under a temporary ceasefire between the United States and Iran, announced this week, but has been threatened by Israeli strikes on Lebanon and claims that the truce is not being upheld.
Read more: Iran to impose $1 per barrel ‘security tax’ on ships in Strait of Hormuz
