Carney backs latest U.S. strikes on Iran as Trump slams NATO allies

Carney backs latest U.S. strikes on Iran as Trump slams NATO allies

Trump says he might have skipped NATO summit if not for friendship with Turkish president

Prime Minister Mark Carney has backed the latest U.S. strikes on Iran, calling it an appropriate response to ceasefire violations.

The remarks were made on the way into the NATO Summit in Ankara, where President Donald Trump declared the ceasefire with the Islamic nation over.

Trump again bashed the western military alliance for not joining the U.S. and Israel in the war.

For the most part western leaders, including Carney, lined up behind the U.S. action.

"Iran had been acting irresponsibly, attacking Saudi and Qatari targets particularly," Carney said on his way into the summit. "There has been a response, as appropriate. Obviously, we look to de- escalation of hostilities."

U.S. says it launched strikes on Iran for 'attacking commercial shipping' in Strait of Hormuz

Trump says agreement with Iran to stop fighting is over after sides exchange strikes

NATO heads to Turkey hoping to avoid a Trump blow-up

The U.S. Central Command says the strikes were in response to attacks on three oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps says it has also responded with attacks on US military targets in Bahrain and Kuwait.

Going into the Ankara Summit, Trump said he’s had enough.

“I don’t want to deal with them anymore, they’re scum,” Trump said. “They’re sick people. And they’re led by sick people. As far as I am concerned, it’s over.”

Trump also renewed his criticism of allies for not standing by the U.S. and Israel on the Iran war and said he might have boycotted the NATO meeting had it not been for his friendship with the host, President Tayyip Erdogan.

He said he was “very disappointed” with the alliance and that the U.S. was not treated well.

“Why are we spending hundreds of billions of dollars, and they're not there for us? We've always been there for them,” Trump said Tuesday alongside Erdogan.

Trump has previously accused European nations of failing ​to let U.S. forces use their airspace and bases on their territories during the war.

European officials have said they largely honoured their commitments to U.S. forces, despite not having been ​consulted about a conflict that roiled their economies.

Carney says he's reminded Trump that the alliance is a defensive alliance.

NATO secretary general Mark Rutte downplayed the rift.

"We know that there is disappointment on the American side when it comes to Iran and it has to do with isolated cases,” Rutte on his way into the summit. “At the same time, we see up to 5,000 sorties from European bases."

NATO leaders are expected to call for Iran to keep the vital strait open and to demand freedom of navigation be respected.

Senior reporter, defence and security

Murray Brewster is the senior defence writer for CBC News, based in Ottawa. He has covered the Canadian military and foreign policy from Parliament Hill for over a decade. Among other assignments, he spent a total of 15 months on the ground covering the Afghan war for The Canadian Press. Prior to that, he covered defence issues and politics for CP in Nova Scotia for 11 years and was bureau chief for Standard Broadcast News in Ottawa.