Europeans shouldn’t be "headless chickens", Boris Johnson tells us

Washington. “The European response to the war in Iran has been appalling,” Boris Johnson, the former British Prime Minister, tells Il Foglio, commenting on the discussions and clashes between the United States and its European allies. “When the captain of your team makes a mistake, what do you do? You do your best to help him. You don’t run off like headless chickens,” says Johnson, using one of his ironic and crystal-clear expressions. The criticism from the former Conservative Prime Minister – famous for his bluntness, which is half-naive and half-brutal – is directed at the Europeans, the much-loved and much-hated Europeans, but Johnson also acknowledges that the Trump administration made a strategic miscalculation: Washington went to war without fully taking into account the Iranian regime’s ability to use the Strait of Hormuz as leverage against the United States and its allies, assuming that Tehran could not close the Strait without seriously damaging its own economy. The Iranian regime, however, is proving willing to endure heavy losses. The conflict has opened rifts within the Atlantic Alliance, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has been directly attacked by Donald Trump. But Johnson plays down the clash: “In reality, the two love each other,” he says over the phone, “it’s just a lovers’ quarrel. I wouldn’t read too much into it.”

The US president’s relations with foreign leaders regularly swing from praise to personal attacks, and then back again. When asked whether relations between Europe and the United States might improve following Trump’s accusations regarding Iran and the lack of support and cooperation from the Europeans, Johnson replies that it is Washington that sets the pace: “The United States – whatever one may say about America under President Trump – is driving the global agenda,” he says, criticising European governments for taking issue with Washington’s approach without offering a solution of their own. Trump is pursuing a just cause; “he is genuinely trying a new approach to resolve the Iranian issue. He hasn’t found a solution yet. Perhaps he won’t succeed, but at least he’s trying.”

Turning to another point of friction between Europe and the United States, Johnson moves on to Ukraine, where Russia’s recent setbacks and signs of an improvement in relations between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky have fuelled a more optimistic mood in some quarters in Washington and across Europe. Johnson is a staunch supporter of Ukraine’s defence; whilst he was Prime Minister, he was among the first to supply weapons to Kyiv, and when he visits, he is welcomed and feted. Until recently, he had never ventured beyond the Ukrainian capital, but he has now also been to the front line, in the ‘kill zone’, as recounted in a report published by the Daily Mail and written by Richard Pendlebury (it begins: “Good heavens, keep it over your face,” the journalist tells Johnson to put on his balaclava and cover up, because they have no bodyguards, they are on the front line, and the former prime minister is highly recognisable – it’s dangerous). On his return from this trip, Johnson says that excessive optimism about the future of the war could prove dangerous: “I am very cautious because we must realise that we risk falling into a huge trap: everyone suddenly thinks that Ukraine is winning this war. But Ukraine is not necessarily winning this war: certainly, Putin is failing in a visible way, and that is a good thing, but what needs to happen is for the Ukrainians to secure the political and constitutional solution that prevents a third invasion. And I still see no real sign of this, neither from Europe nor from America.”

Recent developments have strengthened Ukraine’s military position without resolving this issue. During the NATO summit in Ankara, Trump announced that Ukraine had been granted a licence to produce Patriot missile interceptors; Zelenskyy subsequently confirmed that an agreement had been reached at a political level, although it will take time for production to begin. Ukraine and several European allies have also announced a coalition to develop a low-cost anti-ballistic missile system, as a European alternative or complement to the Patriot. However, according to Johnson, no decision has yet been made on what role Ukraine should play in the future Western security architecture: "The obvious answer remains NATO. Or the European Union with a specific defence pact of some kind, the so-called ‘Porcupine Strategy’ or something else,” he says, referring to potential security guarantees. “But I don’t see anything along those lines, and that’s a problem.”

This issue will continue to weigh on transatlantic relations, as will disagreements over Iran, and the relationship between Trump and Europe is set to continue to fluctuate between displays of unity and public clashes whenever their respective interests diverge. Domestic politics could make the situation even more unstable, with the United States heading towards mid-term elections and other European countries, such as Italy, due to go to the polls. It remains to be seen how these factors will affect transatlantic unity, but whatever happens, Russia will still border Europe.