Germany’s blunt candour about Trump highlights how timid Australia has become

March 26, 2026 — 6:30pm

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Donald Trump started a reckless war against Iran with no plan for victory. Now, a month into a conflict ravaging the global economy, he has no strategy to get out of it. That was the grim and refreshingly honest message from Germany’s defence minister during a visit to Canberra on Thursday. And there was plenty more where that came from.

Boris Pistorius’ candour stood in stark relief to the Albanese government’s timid, often tongue-tied response to the war since it offered speedy and enthusiastic support for the initial strikes on Iran by the US and Israel. The government clearly believes it has little scope to express even mild reservations about Trump’s handling of the war, let alone criticisms. Germany does not feel so constrained.

“What concerns me most about that war is there was no consultation, there is no strategy, there is no clear objective,” Pistorius told the National Press Club in a scathing verdict of Trump’s handling of the Iran conflict. “And the worst thing, from my perspective, is there is no exit strategy.”

Trump’s decision to go to war with Iran, Pistorius argued, is “dangerous for the rules-based international order”. It is impossible to imagine any Australian minister frankly acknowledging this confronting but undeniable reality: Trump,........

© Brisbane Times