The European leaders were particularly silent on Tuesday after the text exchange between the Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the Vice President JD Vance, who mentioned the “hatred” of his long-standing colleagues.
In response to Vance, Hegseth said, “I shared my hatred of European free-loading completely. It is pathetic.”
Vance broke from President Donald Trump, who directed the US to ramp the attacks against the Houthi Terrorist Group in Yemen, supported by Iran, on October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks on Israel began to increase attacks on business ships along with major trade routes after Hamas attacks.
President Donald Trump is taking action against Hauthis to protect American shipping assets and prevent terrorist threats, the White House posted on X on 15 March 2025. (the White House)
US-UK alliance strikes Iran-supported Hurti target in Yemen after ship attacks in the Red Sea
After the aggressive push earlier this month, Vance read to the top security officers of the US, in a signal group chat, including Hegseth, State Secretary Marco Rubio, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and CIA director John Ratcliffe, who are among others, only “3 percent of American trade (Suz canal). 40 percent of European trade.
“There is a real risk that the public does not understand,” they added in the context of the path that connects the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea, and which is important in connecting shipping to Europe, Middle East and Asia. “I am not sure that the President is aware of how incompatible it is with his message in Europe right now.”
“If you think we should do this then come on. I only hate to take Europe out,” he said.
Ukraine President Volodmi Zelancesi, British Prime Minister Kir Stmper and French President Emmanuel Macron held a meeting during a summit on 2 March 2025 in Central London, Britain at Lancaster House. (Reuters via Justin Tallis/Pool)
However, despite the derogatory comments about American top colleagues, European leaders were harassed in their response when Fox News arrived out for digital comments, and public statements were almost non-existing.
Lack of public vengeance may suggest that Europe is cutting its tongue, while it evaluates how to maintain a relationship with a administration that regularly argues against the value of its long -running European colleagues.
The reality is that there is definitely an element of European freeloiding on relying on America, a country in the form of a country that actually has the ability to take and take out Hauthis in a major way, “Alan Mendoza, executive director of Henry Jackson Society, told Fox News Digital by an international affairs think tank located in London, London.” The bunch is, and most European countries do not have the ability to deal with that kind of situation.
From left to right, President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth attended a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on 7 February 2025 at the Oval Office of the White House at Washington, DC. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Image)
“This tells you how naked the military wardrobe of Europe is,” he continued. “The idea that this case was 50 years ago, it would have been laughing, but it is here today.”
Trump meets Macron of France at the White House, ‘A lot of progress’ towards ending the war in Ukraine.
Ultimately, Mendoza argued, if Europe tries to push back on comments, there would be a “element of hypocrisy”.
He said, “I think there are a lot of European people, while the way this conversation has been manifested does not like it … really cannot dispute the substance, even if we don’t like functioning for this conversation,” he said. “And therefore, it is better to say very little about it to risk such a large argument about sharing the burden, once again, coming out.”
At the signal Text Exchange, the administration officials said that “further economic benefits” would be required to “get out” in turn – some British MPs issued the trump administration’s renewed effort to “remove money” from their colleagues.
Additionally, the Leader of the Liberal-Democrats of the UK, usually a more Centrist Party for the Labor Party of the Prime Minister’s Kir Stmper, took the X, shown in the Text Exchange, “JD Vance and his companions clearly do not fit to run a group chat, run the world’s strongest military force alone. We are upset to share our security services alone.”
Although the official reactions of nations looking to create inroads with Trump like the UK and France, they said they would continue “cooperation” with Washington.
The UK – whose Navy and Air Force have been heavily involved in combating the fightest aggression in the Red Sea with the US – told Fox News Digital, “America is our primary ally, and we support defense, intelligence and security more closely than any other two countries.”
The British-regulated cargo ship rubimer is seen drowning on 3 March after being targeted by Yemen’s Houthi forces while traveling in the Red Sea. (Al-Joumhourih channel through Getty Image)
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A British Embassy spokesman said, “UK has been at the forefront of efforts to secure shipping in the Red Sea and has held a series of UK and Joint UK -US strikes over the last two years – helped reduce the fightening rebel property in the region.” “The Prime Minister (KIR) stammers have been clear about the need for European countries to carry forward their safety contribution and the UK has declared a major growth to declare a major increase in defense spending and to maintain future Ukraine peace to Britain soldiers.”
Similarly, a spokesman for the French Embassy said, “France is not in the habit of commenting on the reported comments, no matter how amazing they are. The United States is our ally and France intends to continue cooperation with Washington.”
