A former NATO official and European think tank member has described the current climate as "difficult" and "risky" following the breakdown of peace talks between Washington and Tehran on Tuesday. 

Jamie Shea, former NATO Deputy Assistant Secretary General for Emerging Security Challenges, spoke with CGTN's Jamie Owen as the NATO summit in Türkiye was attended by leaders including Donald Trump and Emmanuel Macron.

"We seem to be drifting back towards war, with all of the unpredictability, the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, with oil prices, which were going down, potentially going back up."

While Shea said it was unlikely that NATO countries, including the United States, would be positive about the latest developments, there was no holding back from President Trump as he spoke to reporters.

"They're a bunch of scum," he said of Iran. "They're scum, and so we don't like them. I don't like them. And they are evil people. And it's the denuclearization of Iran. And we're going to denuke it."

Trump's comments came a day after intense US strikes across Iran, with Qeshm island, Bandar Abbas and Sirik reported to have been targeted. 

Iran responded with strikes on 85 US sites over Iran and Kuwait, saying that the US leader was "playing with fire."

Shea insisted that Trump had "every incentive, politically, to want this war to end," and that it was possible that the conflict between the two countries would settle in the coming days. 

The conflict remains highly unpopular in the US, where it has cost taxpayers an estimated $132 billion. Inflation has risen across the world as shipping and energy supplies remain constricted, and the price of international benchmark Brent crude oil has begun spiking again as tensions rise, indicating wider instability.

Spain under fire

Iran was not the only country targeted by Trump during his NATO appearances. The US president ordered trade and visits with Spain to be cut, calling it a "wasted country" and a "terrible partner."

While implementing sanctions would be challenging due to Spain's membership of the EU, Trump has had a tumultuous relationship with left-leaning prime minister Pedro Sanchez. 

He has previously blasted Sanchez for refusing to support the US in its attacks on Iran, and on Wednesday, he criticized the country for failing to meet a US defense spending target of 5% of GDP. This is despite countries like Slovenia and Czechia, also NATO members, trailing behind Spain's spending. 

Spanish core defense expenditure is expected to reach €35.41 billion ($40.47bn) in 2026, equivalent to 2% of its GDP, according to NATO's latest estimates. Earlier this year, Spain pledged over €1 billion in military aid to Ukraine.

A reaffirmed membership

Despite the ongoing tensions, NATO chief Mark Rutte reconfirmed the US commitment to the alliance on Wednesday, describing the president as "completely committed, there is complete commitment of the United States to NATO."

Nevertheless, Shea noted signs that Europe "is getting its act together and preparing for a future, not without the US in Europe, but with the US doing far less in NATO."

Shea pointed out defense deals being signed between European countries as well as Canada, increased defense budgets, and Europeans "backfilling with frigates, aircraft and drones," which the US previously said they would be pulling from the continent. 

While Shea highlighted a continuation of European leaders trying to appease the president, he also said there was a growing "emergence of this NATO 3.0… where the Europeans are taking an insurance policy on a non-American and European defense future."