Merz, a German journalist, says Iran humiliates the US when talks stagnate
In an abrupt and unusual rebuke of the conflict, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated on Monday that?Iran?s?leadership humiliated the United States by sending U.S. officials into Pakistan without any results.
Merz said that he did not understand the U.S. exit strategy in the Iran War. These comments highlighted the deep divisions between Washington, and its European NATO Allies.
He said that the Iranians were very good at negotiating or, rather, they are very good at not negotiating. They let the Americans go to Islamabad, and then return without a result.
"A whole nation is humiliated by Iranian leadership, particularly by these so-called Revolutionary Guards. "I hope this will end as soon as possible," he said at the?venue in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
Donald Trump, the U.S. president, has criticised NATO allies harshly for failing to send their navies during the conflict to open the Strait of Hormuz. The waterway is virtually closed, causing market chaos and an unprecedented disruption of energy supplies.
Merz reaffirmed that Germans, Europeans, and Americans were not consulted prior to the U.S. launching an attack on Iran in February. He also said that he had expressed his doubts directly to Trump afterward.
Merz said that if he had known it would get worse over the next five to six weeks, he would have warned him more firmly. He compared it with?previous U.S. conflicts in?Iraq or Afghanistan.
The hope of reviving the peace process has receded after Trump cancelled a Saturday visit by Steve Witkoff, Jared?Kushner and his envoys to Islamabad in Pakistan's capital.
After failed talks with Pakistan and Oman, Abbas Araqchi, the Iranian foreign minister, travelled to?Russia? on Monday.
Merz stated that it was obvious the Strait of Hormuz has been?partially?mined. He said that as Europeans, he and his team offered to send German minesweepers in order to clear the Strait of Hormuz, which had been mined to some extent.
He said that the war was costing Germany a "lot of money" - both in taxpayers' dollars and economic strength. (Reporting and writing by Andreas Rinke; editing by Matthias Williams).
(source: Reuters)
