Pompeo gripes about European reaction to Soleimani strike

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo | Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Assassination ‘saved lives in Europe as well,’ says top US diplomat.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo complained about European allies’ responses to the U.S. strike that killed a top Iranian general.

“Frankly, the Europeans haven’t been as helpful as I wish that they could be,“ Pompeo said in an interview late Friday with Fox News, describing his discussions with allies about the assassination of Major General Qassem Soleimani in Iraq.

European leaders have urged restraint in the wake of the killing. While Iranian provocations had been “dangerous,” German Foreign Minister Maas tweeted on Friday, for example, “This action has not made it easier to reduce tensions. I made this point clearly to @SecPompeo as well.”

Pompeo said the response from U.S. allies in the Middle East had been “fantastic,” while others “haven’t been quite as good.”

„The Brits, the French, the Germans all need to understand that what we did, what the Americans did, saved lives in Europe as well,“ he said. „This was a good thing for the entire world, and we are urging everyone in the world to get behind what the United States is trying to do to get the Islamic Republic of Iran to simply behave like a normal nation.”