ToplinePresident Donald Trump bashed the U.S.’s NATO allies—saying they have done “absolutely nothing” to help in the war with Iran—and threatened Tehran to come to the negotiating table before it was “too late,” in a series of posts on Truth Social early on Thursday. US President Donald Trump speaks during the National Republican Congressional Committee's annual President's Dinner at Union Station in Washington, DC.AFP via Getty ImagesKey FactsIn an all-caps post attacking NATO members, Trump said that they had done “ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO HELP WITH THE LUNATIC NATION, NOW MILITARILY DECIMATED, OF IRAN.”The president added that the U.S. needs nothing from NATO but will “‘NEVER FORGET’ THIS VERY IMPORTANT POINT IN TIME.” In a separate post, Trump said Iran’s negotiators were acting “very different and ‘strange,’” and reiterated his claim that they are privately “begging” his administration to make a deal while publicly saying they are only “looking at our proposal.”Trump added Iran should be pushing to make the deal since they “have been militarily obliterated, with zero chance of a comeback.”The president then threatened Tehran that it “better get serious soon, before it is too late, because once that happens, there is NO TURNING BACK, and it won’t be pretty!”Iran Denies Direct Talks With U.s.In an interview with Iranian state media on Wednesday, the country’s Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi said there have been no direct talks between the two countries, only messages passed through intermediaries. Speaking at the National Republican Congressional Committee's dinner on Wednesday night, Trump claimed that Iran was negotiating with the U.S. and “they want to make a ​deal so badly, but they're afraid to say it because they will be killed by their own people.” Trump’s remarks contradicted Aragchi’s statement that the U.S. proposal to end the conflict was being studied and reviewed, but that did not mean negotiations were underway. How Have Stocks Reacted?U.S. stock futures are down in early trading on Thursday as the market’s optimism about a quick resolution to the Iran war has begun to fade. Dow Futures fell 0.76% to 46,357 points, while the benchmark S&P 500 futures index dropped 0.85% to 6,584.25 points. The tech-centric Nasdaq futures index saw a slightly bigger decline, falling 1% to 24,118.25 points. The premarket slump coincides with a rally in crude oil prices, with the global benchmark Brent Crude Index rising to $107.15 per barrel, up more than 4.8% compared to the previous day.TangentTrump’s public criticism of NATO members comes a day after reports that the alliance’s secretary general, Mark Rutte, was facing pushback from European leaders over his comments about the Iran war. In an interview on Sunday, Rutte said Trump was attacking Iran to “make the whole world safe” and “It’s only logical that European countries take a couple of weeks to come together” and “answer the president’s call, to make sure that we secure the free sailing through the Strait of Hormuz.” Comments made by the NATO Secretary General, who has publicly flattered Trump by calling him NATO’s “Daddy,” haven’t so far been echoed by other European leaders in the alliance. Germany’s President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has described the conflict as a “politically disastrous mistake for those involved.” Further ReadingIran Denies ‘Productive’ Talks Hyped By Trump—Accuses Him Of Manipulating Markets (Forbes)