Nigel Farage said Thursday that Donald Trump broke a promise by launching a war with Iran. Speaking to reporters in London after a defense speech, the Reform UK leader called the decision "bizarre" and said he would not have supported a drawn-out conflict.
Farage said Trump took power on a pledge to avoid endless foreign wars. "Keep your promises," Farage said, when asked about the lesson Republicans should take from the midterms. He said, "He broke a promise — that was no more foreign wars."
Farage blamed rising gas and diesel prices for the Republicans' midterm losses. "We're eight months in, and the resultant rise in gas and diesel prices, more than anything else, is what did them in," he said. He later told broadcasters he worries Trump will "continue aggressively attacking Iran" now that he has lost Congress.
Farage initially backed the U.S. strikes launched in February. He urged the U.K. government to "back the Americans in this vital fight against Iran!" Within two weeks, he changed his position and urged ministers not to "get involved directly in another foreign war."
According to POLITICO Europe, a senior Reform UK adviser, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the party will keep building "good relations" with senior Republicans such as JD Vance and Marco Rubio. Another official said the party should also build ties with right-wing movements in Europe, pointing to the rise of right-wing parties in France, Italy and Spain. That official said, "I've never been a huge fan of Mr. Trump," and added, "Personally, I think that's more important than America."