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German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Tuesday sharply criticized U.S. President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal and his decision to launch what he called an “illegal” war against Iran.
“In my opinion, this war is a violation of international law,” Steinmeier said in a speech at the German Foreign Ministry.
"There is little doubt that the justification of an imminent attack on the U.S. is invalid, a view also shared by many in the American bureaucracy,” he added, apparently referring to recent resignations linked to the controversial war.
Steinmeier, who previously served as foreign minister and helped negotiate the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, said Trump’s decision in 2018 to unilaterally withdraw from the agreement and later pursue military action instead was the wrong approach to resolving the crisis.
"This war is a politically disastrous mistake, and what frustrates me most is that this is a truly avoidable, unnecessary war if its goal was to stop Iran on its path to developing a nuclear bomb," Steinmeier said in his strongest public criticism so far of the ongoing conflict.
He also referred to remarks made in 2015 by then-U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who had emphasized the historical significance of the agreement with Iran and argued that the nuclear deal had prevented a military confrontation.
"We were never as far from Iran acquiring nuclear weapons as we were after the agreement was concluded on July 14, 2015," Steinmeier said.
"However, in the second year of his first term, President Trump withdrew from this agreement. And in his second term, he is now waging war,” he added.
Regional escalation in the Middle East has continued since the United States and Israel launched a joint offensive on Iran on Feb. 28, which has so far killed more than 1,340 people, including then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Iran has retaliated with repeated drone and missile strikes targeting Israel as well as Gulf countries hosting U.S. military assets.
Tehran has also taken control of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global oil transportation route through which much of the world’s energy supplies pass, particularly shipments to Asian countries.
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