By John Irish
PARIS, April 1 (Reuters) – France hit back on Wednesday at threats by President Donald Trump to pull the U.S. out of NATO, saying the military alliance was designed to ensure security in the Euro-Atlantic area and not to launch offensive operations in the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump told Reuters he would state in an address to the nation later on Wednesday that he was “absolutely” considering withdrawing the United States from NATO, echoing comments he made in an interview with Britain’s Daily Telegraph after allies failed to back U.S. military action against Iran.
French President Emmanuel Macron has suggested having a U.N. framework for any action in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for global oil supplies that Iran has effectively shut, and said international efforts could happen only when hostilities calm, insurance and shipping firms are consulted and Iran consents.
“Let me remind you what NATO is. It is a military alliance concerned with the security of the Euro-Atlantic region. It is not designed to carry out operations in the Strait of Hormuz, which would be a breach of international law,” Junior Army Minister Alice Rufo told the War & Peace conference in Paris.
Rufo, who is a close ally of Macron and was one of his top diplomats, said she understood the Americans were annoyed about France’s refusal to join a coalition to immediately unblock the strait.
But Paris favoured working on a plan to restore transit and freedom of navigation by means “not of an offensive nature,” she said.
“I understand this irritation, but I am not speaking on behalf of the United States,” Rufo said.
“I am speaking for a country that is a founding member of the Atlantic Alliance (NATO) and a founding member of the European Union, and which for the past 20 years has been saying that Europeans must take a greater share of responsibility for collective defence in Europe.”
France drew Trump’s ire on Tuesday after it refused Israel the use of its airspace to transfer American weapons for the war in Iran, three sources told Reuters.
(Reporting by John Irish; Writing by Dominique Vidalon; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Timothy Heritage)
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