Senior Israeli officials have sharply criticized European countries for their response to the war with Iran, Ynet reports.

"Europe not only failed to mobilize to keep the sea lanes open in the Strait of Hormuz, but it also did not help protect the Gulf states from Iranian attacks. Without a doubt, this is Europe's ugliest hour," one Israeli official said.

According to him, European countries are entirely focused on the war in Ukraine and are trying to direct international attention there, including investments in defense budgets and weapons supplies. "Europeans are also very irritated that Trump intends to ease sanctions against Russia to curb rising oil prices. They see this as abandoning Ukraine and flattering Putin," the official added.

Another Israeli official stated that "the current campaign truly exposes the full hypocrisy and weakness of most European countries."

In their view, Europe "fully understands the danger of the ayatollah regime, but is only willing to engage in diplomacy." "Talk without a military option stops no one, and unfortunately, there is no self-reflection in Europe about the seriousness of the threat," the officials noted.

"Behind the scenes, they are doing very little — for example, limited assistance from British intelligence MI6 to Mossad and the CIA," they complained.

Britain and France drew particular criticism for refusing to assist the U.S. Britain did allow American aircraft to strike Iran from Diego Garcia — a strategic British base in the Indian Ocean hosting joint British-American aviation.

"Europe — Germany, France, and Britain — insisted on signing the nuclear deal, which only addressed the nuclear program and ignored ballistic missiles and terrorism. This allowed Iran to act brazenly and advance its nuclear and missile programs. France and Britain turned out to be doormats, including on the Strait of Hormuz. Instead of seizing a historic opportunity to loosen Iran's grip, they only care about rising energy prices. France sent an aircraft carrier to the strait, Britain sent a minesweeper — and that's it. A very weak response. When Iran attacks Cyprus, an EU country, Europe does nothing and does not help Israel. It only provides humanitarian aid to residents of Dahiya who fled Lebanon, and nothing more."

In the view of the Israeli officials, European countries should have mobilized not only to protect shipping routes but also to help countries such as Jordan and the UAE intercept attacks.

"They have shown themselves to be weak countries. This will not be forgotten," an Israeli official emphasized.