Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto claimed during a Tuesday morning interview with the newspaper Corriere della Sera that President Donald Trump should have more “courageous” advisers because, according to him, no one “dares to contradict” him.
He provided no evidence to back the claim against the president.
Crosetto spoke with Corriere over the ongoing war in Iran, the ultimatum issued by President Trump against the Iranian Islamic regime, and the crisis derived by the war — which he describes as a situation “that has no precedent in recent history.”
Asked by the newspaper if “there is a way to stop Trump” after Iran has so far rejected all of the United States’ proposals, Crosetto said Trump is “the leader of a sovereign nation, and no one from outside is able to influence him.”
Corriere asked the Minister if he is considering Trump could face impeachment proceedings, to which he reportedly answered, “No, I don’t even think his enemies are considering it.”
“I simply believe he should have more courageous advisors. One of the problems with this presidency is that no one dares to contradict the boss,” Crosetto said.
“The Iran of the ayatollahs — led by fundamentalists, anti-Western, and holding every freedom in check — was everyone’s problem. With this war decided unilaterally without consultation or international legitimacy, they’ve handed him a gift,” he continued. “Less approximation regarding timing and methods would have been helpful.”
Crosetto told the newspaper that Europe is “doing what it can” to oppose Trump, but that he does not think it’s very suscesful. He argued in the interview that, in the meantime, “everyone should do their part.”
“I maintain that Italy took an important and serious stance when it said it did not support this war and sought to limit the damage as much as possible,” he said.
Corriere told Crosetto if he thinks Italy could do more now with regards to oppose Trump and the war as the Italian opposition demands, asserting that Italy “did it too late.”
“Do you really think international relations are managed by a race to see who can issue a statement first? Italy isn’t an ally of Trump or Biden; we are allies of the United States,” the Minister reportedly responded.
“Only a fool would think this alliance could be broken. Let’s think about today; let’s think about Iran deciding to retaliate by launching a missile at us. Without NATO’s defense, every country would be at much greater risk and would be far more vulnerable,” he continued.
With regards to the possibility of the U.S. leaving NATO, the Minister said that he does not think Trump will pull out of the organization.
“I don’t think he will, and he can’t. He’d need Congress’s approval, and I doubt it would be in favor. Instead, he might decide to withdraw troops from Europe. And that would leave us weaker and less protected,” Crosetto said. “Right now, we’re not in a position to respond collectively by replacing them.”
“Dialogue, diplomatic efforts. Trump’s agenda is driven by the desire to win quickly, partly because he’ll have to face the midterm elections. This war is also putting the United States’ global leadership at risk,” he asserted.