Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at NATO chief Mark Rutte’s comments about the Iran war, a covert British-Norwegian operation to deter Russian undersea attacks, and public opinion ahead of Hungary’s parliamentary elections.

‘They Were a Bit Surprised’

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte defended allies’ responses to the Iran war on Thursday, despite U.S. President Donald Trump continuing to criticize members’ hesitancy to help U.S. forces reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at NATO chief Mark Rutte’s comments about the Iran war, a covert British-Norwegian operation to deter Russian undersea attacks, and public opinion ahead of Hungary’s parliamentary elections.

‘They Were a Bit Surprised’

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte defended allies’ responses to the Iran war on Thursday, despite U.S. President Donald Trump continuing to criticize members’ hesitancy to help U.S. forces reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

“Allies are doing everything the United States is asking,” Rutte said, speaking at an event at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute in Washington. He added that “each country is now looking for what they can do to make sure the strait remains open.”

Trump hosted Rutte at the White House on Wednesday, during which the two reportedly discussed the United States’ myriad frustrations with NATO as well as Trump’s threat to withdraw from the alliance entirely. “NATO WASN’T THERE WHEN WE NEEDED THEM, AND THEY WON’T BE THERE IF WE NEED THEM AGAIN,” Trump wrote on Truth Social after the meeting.

Although Rutte acknowledged on Thursday that some allies were “a bit slow” to provide logistical and other support for the U.S. war effort in Iran, he said that “[i]n fairness, they were also a bit surprised” that the United States decided to launch strikes on Iran in the first place.

Now, as Washington and Tehran enter day two of their cease-fire, reopening and safeguarding the Strait of Hormuz remain top concerns.

Only five vessels traveled through the strategic waterway on Wednesday, according to shipping tracking firm Kpler. That is down from an average of around 10 vessels a day over the previous five days. On Thursday, ship traffic dipped below 10 percent of normal volumes.

Experts argue that this is largely due to Iran’s demand to oversee and coordinate all passage through the strait. Tehran has forced some shipowners to pay tolls to transit Hormuz, and Iran has mostly........

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