Rubio faults allies for thin support in US push against Iran

Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday criticized U.S. allies for providing inadequate military support for American efforts to curb Iran's nuclear ambitions and secure the Strait of Hormuz, singling out Spain for refusing to grant U.S. forces access to its military bases.

The remarks, made after meetings with Pope Leo XIV and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, reflect the Trump administration's deepening frustration with NATO partners over military burden-sharing as Washington presses allies to back its confrontational posture toward Tehran with concrete action, not just statements.

Rubio said neither he nor President Donald Trump could understand why allies would refuse to back U.S. operations against Iran. "I don't understand why anybody would not be supportive of that, and (President Donald Trump) doesn't understand, and rightfully so, why somebody wouldn't (be) supportive of that," Rubio said, according to The Korea Times.

Spain drew specific criticism after it denied U.S. forces access to its military bases. Rubio warned that verbal opposition to Iranian expansion was hollow without tangible backing. "If the answer is no, we don't want to normalize it, then you'd better have something more than just strongly worded statements to back it up. And that's the point I've made in all of my visits, not just here," he said.

Rubio also questioned the core value of NATO membership if allied nations block the United States from using European bases to project force during crises outside Europe. "If one of the main reasons why the U.S. is in NATO is the ability to have forces deployed in Europe that we could project to other contingencies, and now that's no longer the case, at least when it comes to some NATO members, that's a problem, and it has to be examined," he said.

Separately, the Trump administration announced it would withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany, which currently hosts roughly 36,000 American service members. Trump has also publicly faulted South Korea for not responding to U.S. calls for naval support in the region, calling the country "not helpful" despite a substantial American military presence near the Korean Peninsula, The Korea Times reported.

Rubio's Rome visit was aimed at repairing bilateral ties strained by the U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran. He indicated the same message on allied burden-sharing has been delivered to other countries beyond Italy.

Iran's push to assert control over the Strait of Hormuz, a critical artery for global energy shipments, has become a central flashpoint in U.S. foreign policy under the Trump administration, which has repeatedly pressed allies to move beyond rhetoric and commit to concrete military cooperation.