26.03.2026 19:00
Regarding the U.S. attacks on Iran, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier stated, "This war is a catastrophic political mistake. We have no reason to adopt the U.S. worldview." In response, U.S. President Donald Trump said, "Then Ukraine is not our war either, but we helped. This is a very inappropriate statement. But he said it. He can't take it back."
The words of German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who made harsh criticisms of the U.S. policy towards Iran, resonated in the international community. Steinmeier's statement, "This war is a political mistake; we do not have to adopt the U.S. worldview," escalated tensions with the U.S.
TRUMP: UKRAINE IS NOT OUR WAR EITHER, BUT WE HELPED
U.S. President Donald Trump described Steinmeier's statements as "inappropriate." Citing Ukraine as an example, Trump reacted by saying, "Then Ukraine is not our war either, but we helped; you cannot take back these words."
STEINMEIER: THIS WAR IS ILLEGAL ACCORDING TO INTERNATIONAL LAW
On the other hand, in a recent statement, Steinmeier criticized the attacks by the U.S. and Israel on Iran and the stance of the German government, saying, "Not calling international law violations as violations does not make our foreign policy more credible. This war is illegal according to international law, and there is no doubt about that."
"WE HAVE NO REASON TO ADOPT THE U.S. WORLDVIEW"
Steinmeier, who displayed a different attitude from the German government, which has avoided classifying the Iran war as illegal according to international law, stated, "The worldview of the current American government is different from ours. This view pays no attention to established rules, partnership, and trust that develops over time. We cannot change this. We have to deal with it, but this is my belief. We have no reason to adopt this worldview. Great powers can survive in a world without rules and may even benefit from it in the short term. However, this does not apply to us and does not apply to the overwhelming majority of states either."
"THE IRAN WAR IS ILLEGAL ACCORDING TO INTERNATIONAL LAW"
Steinmeier, stating that "the world of tomorrow must be more than a bilateral struggle between the U.S. and China," emphasized that "our foreign policy must be pragmatic and effective." He added, "Our foreign policy does not become more convincing by not naming the violation of law with the principle of rights. We already had to deal with this in the Gaza War. We have to deal with this in the Iran War as well because this war is against international law. This war is also a catastrophic political mistake. If the purpose of the war is to stop Iran from developing a nuclear bomb, this war is truly an unnecessary war that can be prevented."
Steinmeier remarked, "We have never been this far from an agreement aimed at preventing Iran's nuclear armament since July 14, 2015," recalling that the phrase "We are preventing a war that Americans will have to wage against Iran" was used, but two years later, in 2018 during his first term, U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew from this agreement.