Boris Pistorius (German Defense Minister): “This is not our war; we did not start it”

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2026/03/16/world/iran-war-trump-oil-lebanon/36e1e553-f42c-54c8-aa5a-38410c35f46f?smid=url-share

Posted by Bunny_Commando

25 Comments

  1. Bunny_Commando on

    Germany rejected a U.S. demand for military support to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, after President Trump warned that it would be [bad for NATO](https://www.ft.com/content/1ca6d121-760b-4ec5-b6ad-514fdaa94873) if American allies did not do more to help.“This is not our war; we did not start it,” Boris Pistorius, the German defense minister, said at a news conference in Berlin on Monday. “We want diplomatic solutions and a swift end to the conflict, but sending more warships to the region will likely not help achieve that,” he said.

    “What does Donald Trump expect from, say, a handful or two of European frigates in the Strait of Hormuz?” he added. “He needs them to achieve what the mighty US Navy cannot manage on its own there, is that it? That’s the question I’m asking myself.”

  2. CreeperCooper on

    You do not have the cards, mr. President!

    Trump hasn’t even said thank you yet!

  3. StrangerConscious637 on

    The orange fascists monkey in the white house started it. He should finish it now and then finish himself.

  4. Germany and eu finally found lost spine and not going to war that USA started. PM of Spain and now Germany. I’m now a little more proud of independent baby steps of EU 🇪🇺
    👍🏻

    🇭🇷

  5. Samurai_GorohGX on

    Trump just needs our help to minimise the number of US casualties… by having our soldiers dying instead.
    Won’t anyone think of the midterms?/s

  6. Hopeful_Sun_ on

    the EU should not be involved in any war! we suffered enough during the world wars, thanks

  7. Any_Table9811 on

    I don’t get how Trump can first basically demolish the trust in Nato then demand Nato help after he starts a war.

  8. An_Almond_Thief on

    Took longer than most thought, but Trump is finally being punished for his hubris. Turns out your allies will remember when you apply economical sanctions and restrict military aid. They will repay you in kind.

  9. Germany, UK, Italy, France and Spain all confirmed as a no to Trump’s request, any other country with apare capabilities ?

    I guess the Netherlands will also confirm a no before or after the bilateral with Germany

    E: Also Greece confirmed they won’t participate

  10. Article 5 only applies when a nato member is attacked. Not even sure Trump et al even know what NATO is.

  11. v_for_vegetta on

    Nato is defensive alliance. not offensive. also why they want help? they said they won already

  12. Didudidudadu737 on

    Why didn’t the Trump call on Board of Peace, after all he already won and wants peace?

  13. Honestly if this wasn’t about people’s lifes and didn’t affect the entire world, I’d just have an enormous amount of schadenfreude. I don’t know how many times even here on Reddit I’ve seen Americans jerk themselves about how almighty their military is and how every opponent would just fold under their power. Well looks like your orange idiot and his band of imbeciles shows that that’s not really the case. So yeah, great response from Pistorius, let them try to finish this war that they started.

  14. Denmark is also “waiting”
    Besides the obvious reason our navy is busy defending Greenland there is also an election for parliament going on.
    A majority suppurt for military involvement in a foreign nation is difficult to imagine in a time when one deciding vote can shift who rules the next for years.

    Sorry Trump. We have to find all those Chinese and Russian warships around Greenland first. Protecting native soil (ice) is more important.

  15. I love seeing the MAGAs freak out over our denial. Their stupid little brains don’t understand that antagonising the rest of the world has consequences, and that America relied on Europe _a lot_ more than they were willing to admit.

    MAGAs: “He WaS JuSt TrOlLiNg!”

    Europe: “Damn, bro… That’s crazy”

    US: “We Really need minesweepers!”

    Europe: “Yeah, I bet. Good luck, though! 👍”

    P.s.: The US long used NATO to get other armies to specialise in aspects of war best suited for their capabilities. In the case of Hormuz, the Belgian and Dutch navies are the two premiere minesweepers in the alliance. They were, in fact, so capable that the US has systematically stripped itself of minesweepers, including the four minesweepers of the ME fleet the US dismantled in 2025, because the BeNeSam just had it covered. Now, the US has to do it themselves, and, guess what? They can’t. 

  16. Herr_Demurone on

    I fucking never thought I’d say Boris Pistorius is a freaking baller right now, WOW!