Britain and Spain pushed back against Washington on Friday in response to a report that the Trump administration is considering whether to punish the two nations over their failure to offer full-throated support for the war against Iran.<\/p>\n
An internal Pentagon email, reported by the Reuters news agency<\/a>, suggested that options under review include withdrawing American support for Britain\u2019s sovereignty over the Falkland Islands \u2014 which are also claimed by Argentina \u2014 and seeking to suspend Spain from NATO.<\/p>\n In a statement, the Pentagon did not directly address the Reuters report or the options discussed in it, but the press secretary, Kingsley Wilson, said: \u201cDespite everything that the United States has done for our NATO allies, they were not there for us. The War Department will ensure that the president has credible options to ensure that our allies are no longer a paper tiger and instead do their part.\u201d<\/p>\n The report follows a succession of statements from an administration that has appeared disdainful of international law<\/a>, questioned the value of the NATO and scolded allies who did not join the fight against Iran.<\/p>\n Questioning British sovereignty of the Falklands, an archipelago several hundred miles east of the Argentine coast, would be a significant diplomatic affront that could intensify trans-Atlantic tensions with Britain.<\/p>\n In 1982, Britain\u2019s then prime minister, Margaret Thatcher, sent a naval task force to the South Atlantic Ocean to recapture the islands after they were invaded by Argentina, then led by a military dictator, Leopoldo Galtieri<\/a>.<\/p>\n Asked about the Reuters report, a spokesman for Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain said on Friday that his government \u201ccould not be clearer about the U.K.\u2019s position,\u201d and that \u201csovereignty rests with the U.K. and the islanders\u2019 right to self-determination is paramount.\u201d<\/p>\n Downing Street noted that people living in the Falkland Islands had previously voted overwhelmingly in favor of remaining a British overseas territory.<\/p>\n The furor comes at a sensitive moment, with King Charles III preparing for a state visit to the United States beginning Monday. The British opposition leader, Kemi Badenoch, told Sky News that any challenge to the sovereignty of the islands was \u201cabsolute nonsense\u201d<\/a> and that Britain needed \u201cto make sure that we are very determined in protecting British sovereign territory,\u201d adding \u201cthat includes the Falkland Islands.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr. Trump has alarmed some European allies by limiting American support for Ukraine\u2019s conflict with Russia, and by staking a claim to Greenland, a self-governing territory within Denmark which is a fellow NATO member country.<\/p>\n Since Washington began military strikes against Iran, Mr. Trump has not concealed his frustration with Mr. Starmer, who initially refused the U.S. permission to use British air bases for strikes.<\/p>\n