US President Donald Trump has reiterated his accusations that Australia has not done enough to help him in Iran and the Strait of Hormuz, while dismissing Canberra’s claims. announced an increase in defense spending recently.
When asked about the announcement – which was partly to mitigate criticism from Washington about Australia’s poor military spending – Trump initially said “we’ll see about that” and then talked about US success in Iran.
When asked again, he began to condemn Australia for not supporting the war – specifically for reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
“I’m not happy with Australia because they weren’t there when we asked them to be there,” he said.
“Australia is another country. They had nothing to do with Hormuz. So I’m not happy.”
Trump made the comments while answering questions as he left the White House on Thursday (Friday morning AEST).
Australia has agreed to participate in “reasonable efforts” to help reopen the strait in a timely manner, along with several other countries.
More to come
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Michael Koziol is the North American correspondent for The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald. He is a former Sydney editor, deputy editor of the Sun-Herald and federal political reporter in Canberra.Connect through X or email address.
