New posts
01:19
Trump Suggests US May Not Support NATO
Amid Anger Over Refusal To Join Iran War
US President Donald Trump again expressed his disdain for NATO, saying that "I guess we don't have to be there" for the alliance if needed following his complaints that it didn't support the US war with Iran, comments likely to send shockwaves through member nations.
"They just weren't there," he said on March 27 at an economic forum in Miami.
"We spend hundreds of billions of dollars a year on NATO, hundreds, protecting them, and we would have always been there for them, but now, based on their actions, I guess we don't have to be, do we?"
"Why would we be there for them if they're not there for us? They weren't there for us."
"That sounds like a breaking story? Yes, sir. Is that breaking news? I think we just have breaking news, but that's the fact. I've been saying that. Why would we be there for them if they're not there for us? They weren't there for us."
Trump said it was a tremendous mistake for NATO members to remain out of the Middle East conflict.
Its going to make a lot of money for the United States, because we spend hundreds of billions of dollars a year on NATO. But now, based on their actions, I guess we dont have to.
NATO listed itsmilitary budgetin 2025 at about $5.3 billion and said the United States contributes about 15.9 percent of it, or $842 million. However, the US government has said theDefense Departmentwill spend more than $882 billion in the current fiscal year.
The comments are likely to raise concerns among US allies in the alliance and also among Democratic leaders in the United States. They may also worry some members of Trump's Republican Party, including members of Congress.
Trump has reacted angrily to NATO members' refusal to become involved in the US-Israeli war with Iran and their reluctance to help provide security to the Strait of Hormuz shipping lanes until a cease-fire is in place.
Trump, who has long questioned the viability of NATO, has often cast doubt on his willingness to support the alliance, saying he would not come to members aid if they didnt pay enough for their own defense.
SEE ALSO:
From Central Europe, Rubio Rejects NATO Exit Talk, Calls For Stronger European Role
Trump insisted that NATO members raise their military spending to 2 percent of GDP, a level pledged in 2014 to be met over the next decade.
At least 24 have met that requirement, although Trump has since suggested the threshold may have to rise to 5 percent of GDP, a level many member nations said would not be economically viable.
Only Poland comes close to 5 percent, although Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania have signaled they will raise spending to this level as well.
NATO was established by the United States and 11 other countries to counter Soviet aggression following World War II. It has grown to 32 members and now includes many nations formerly part of the Soviet Union or under its sphere of influence. The United States has been the dominant member of NATO since its inception.
Trump has previously claimed that other countries would not come to the defense of the United States, although the only time Article 5 has been invoked is when it was determined the United States was attacked on September 11, 2001.
Article 5 is one of the main pillars of the alliance's collective defense framework, setting that an armed attack against one member is considered an attack against all members.
Trump has also suggested using the US commitment to NATO as leverage in his trade war in his effort to target what he has labeled as unfair trade policies by European nations.
With reporting by Reuters
Read morehere.
Share
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
22:58
27.3.2026
Merz Says Germany Could Help Clear Mines
In Strait Of Hormuz Once War Is Over
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he could see the country's armed forces being deployed to clear mines in the Strait of Hormuz once the war in Iran has ended. "We can do that. And if we are asked to do so and it takes place within the framework of a genuine collective security mandate -- that is, the United Nations, NATO, the European Union -- with a resolution from the [German parliament], that is an option," he said at a event organized by the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper on March 27. Merz said the strait is currently "obviously not mined at all." Nor does he know whether Tehran is planning to mine it.
Share
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
22:38
27.3.2026
Iranian Projectiles Damage US Refueling Craft At Saudi Base
An Iranian missile struck the Prince Sultan Airbase in Saudi Arabia on March 27, damaging several US refueling aircraft, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing US and Saudi officials familiar with the strike.
The officials said the strike also involved drones.
The missile is at least the second to strike the base during the war against Iran, which began on February 28 with US and Israeli air strikes against Iran. Tehran has retaliated by launching missiles and drones against US assets based on the territory of Washington's Arab allies in the Gulf and elsewhere in the region.
A number of US refueling aircraft have been lost or damaged during the current war with Iran. (file photo)
The Pentagon did not immediately comment.
In an earlier strike at the base, five US refueling aircraft were damaged, most only superficially.
On March 13, six US Air Force members were killed in a midair crash of two KC-135 refueling aircraft over western Iraq. The Pentagon said no friendly or hostile fire was involved.
Share
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
22:26
27.3.2026
Israel Looks To 'Historic Turning Point' Against Hezbollah in Lebanon
The Israeli military said it has launched a new wave of strikes late on March 27 against Iran-allied Hezbollah targets in Beirut, hours following a previous series of attacks. Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir said there were "significant plans to continue the operation" against Hezbollah during a visit to troops in southern Lebanon in the evening. "We are at a historic turning point," Zamir said. Israel was pursuing its plan "to fundamentally change the security situation from Tehran to Beirut," he said.
Share
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
22:20
27.3.2026
Special Envoy Witkoff Says US May Hold Talks 'This Week' With Iran
US special envoy Steve Witkoff on March 27 said he believes Tehran will hold talks with Washington "this week," as uncertainty remains over the status of a 15-point US peace plan that Iran has received.
"We think there will be meetings this week. We're certainly hopeful for it," Witkoff told a business forum in Miami, where US President Donald Trump is scheduled to speak later in the day.
Witkoff said the United States is expecting a response from Tehran to the peace plan.
US special envoy Steve Witkoff said Washington expects an answer to its 15--point peace plan given to Iran.
"We have a 15-point plan on the table. We expect the Iranians to respond. It could solve it all," Witkoff said.
Informally, Tehran has responded sharply to the 15-point plan, saying the US conditions were excessive and that it will end the war when it chooses and if its conditions are met, insisting on its right to freely develop its ballistic missile program.
Despite the efforts at a peace deal or cease-fire, the violence continued in the Middle East.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi on March 27 vowed that Tehran would exact a "HEAVY price for Israeli crimes" after attacks on two of the country's largest steel factories and nuclear sites.
Meanwhile, Israel's military warned that Iran had fired missiles toward the country late on March 27, with air raid sirens heard in Jerusalem and explosions seen in the West Bank city Jericho.
Read morehere.
Share
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
18:59
27.3.2026
Iran: Ardakan Yellow Cake Factory In Yazd Province Attacked
The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran announced that the Ardakan yellow cake production plant in Yazd Province had been attacked on March 27.
Initial investigations indicate that the strike did not result in any release of radioactive materials outside the complex, the report said.
The Israeli military also confirmed the attack, writing on X: "This facility is the only one of its kind in Iran. At this site, raw materials extracted from the ground are processed into material used for uranium enrichment. This constitutes a significant stage in the nuclear weapons production program of the Iranian regime and is considered the beginning of the production chain required for developing nuclear weapons."
The Saghand yellow cake production plant in Ardakan was put into operation in May 2023. The Islamic republic uses yellow cake in uranium enrichment facilities.
Share
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
18:47
27.3.2026
CENTCOM Reports 303 US Soldiers Injured In War With Iran
The US Central Command announced on March 27 that 303 US troops have been wounded since the start of the war with Iran. Most of the injuries were minor, and 273 have returned to duty, according to CENTCOM.
Meanwhile, an unnamed American official told AFP that 10 soldiers have been seriously injured.
CENTCOM previously said that 13 soldiers had been killed in the current US-Israeli war with Iran: seven in the Persian Gulf and six in Iraq.
Share
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
18:41
27.3.2026
Rubio Says Iran Operation Expected To Be Complete In 'Weeks'
The United States expects its military operation in Iran to end in "weeks, not months," US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said after a meeting with the other Group of Seven (G7) foreign ministers in France as the US-Israeli war approached it fifth week.
Speaking before departing on March 27, Rubio also said the United States can achieve its goals in Iran without ground troops, and that Iran may seek to set up a toll system for passage through the Strait of Hormuz, which he said would not be acceptable.
He said the United States is "very confident" that it will achieve its objectives "very soon."
Rubio's remarks came as Iran warned of new attacks across the Middle East and urged civilians to avoid areas near US forces, a day after US President Donald Trump extended a deadline for Tehran to open the crucial oil-and-gas transport route until April 6.
To read the full report, clickhere.
Speaking before departing on March 27, Rubio also said the United States can achieve its goals in Iran without ground troops, and that Iran may seek to set up a toll system for passage through the Strait of Hormuz, which he said would not be acceptable.
Share
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
17:35
27.3.2026
G7 Leaders Call For Immediate Stop To Attacks On Civilian Infrastructure
In a joint statement issued on March 27, foreign ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) have jointly called for an immediate stop to attacks against civilian infrastructure in the US-Israeli war with Iran.
The statement, released on the second day of the G7 meeting between the United States, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the European Union in Paris, underlined the consequences of the conflict that have fallen on the civilian population across the Middle East.
"There can be no justification for the deliberate targeting of civilians in situations of armed conflict as well as attacks on diplomatic facilities," the foreign ministers said.
The group included US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in attendance for his first face-to-face meeting with G7 leaders since before the current conflict began on February 28. The statement said that leaders were "focused on the value of diverse partnerships, coordination, and supporting initiatives" to reduce global economic tension, "which have direct impacts on our citizens," as they reiterated the need to relaunch secure navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
The key waterway accounts for around one-fifth of global oil shipments and is effectively closed by Iranian forces, spiking global energy prices.
To read the full report, clickhere.
Share
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
16:59
27.3.2026
Iran Reports Attacks On Arak Nuclear Facility, Steel Factories In Ahvaz, Isfahan
The Arak Heavy Water Complex, known as Khondab, was hit "in two stages" on March 27, according to a local government official.
"The Khondab Heavy Water Complex was targeted in two stages by aggression from the American and Zionist enemy," said Fars news agency, citing Hassan Ghamari, an official in the central Markazi Province.
The Arak Heavy Water Complex is one of Iran's major nuclear facilities and a center for heavy water production. The complex was previously targeted during the 12-day war between Israel and the United States against Iran.
The official said there no danger to the people in the vicinity.
The nuclear water reactor of Arak, south of Tehran (file photo)
Meanwhile, Iranian media on March 27 reported attacks on steel production plants in the cities of Ahvaz and Isfahan.
Mohammad Ali Zarei, spokesman for the Iranian Ministry of Industry, Mines and Trade, confirmed the attack on the Mobarakeh and Khuzestan Steel complexes in an interview with Tasnim News Agency, which is affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).
"Some damage has been caused to parts of these two complexes," he said. He did not provide further details about the extent of damage or possible victims.
However, Fars, which is also linked to the IRGC, reported that "an electrical substation and an alloy steel production line" were targeted in the attack on Mobarakeh Steel in Isfahan. At the Khuzestan Steel plant, the company's "storage facilities" were also hit.
Images of huge plumes of smoke rising from steel factories in Isfahan and Ahvaz were also shared on social media.
The Israeli military announced in a statement that its air force had "launched a broad wave of attacks against the infrastructure of the Iranian regime."
Share
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
Load more
Share
Tweet
Share
Flip
Email
