U.S. allies refuse to send ships to the Strait of Hormuz. China, the country most dependent on oil transportation through this route, has ignored the U.S. request for help.
Japan and Australia have already rejected Washington’s request to send warships to the region. In Europe, the question of possible participation in the operation remains open. Only Estonia has agreed to help with its fleet.
Despite the escalation, a full-scale NATO mission in Iran is still unlikely, four alliance diplomats told the publication on condition of anonymity. Such a decision requires unanimous support from all allies, which is difficult to achieve, they said. There has been no formal request from Washington within NATO yet, Politico clarified.
At the same time, The Telegraph reported that Starmer decided not to send British ships to help unblock the Strait of Hormuz. In addition, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadeful told the ARD TV channel that he was “very skeptical” about the idea of expanding the EU Aspides maritime mission to the Strait of Hormuz to ensure the safety of commercial ships.
Earlier, Axios quoted sources as saying that the administration of US President Donald Trump and the head of state personally were working on forming a coalition to unblock the Strait of Hormuz. Later, Trump himself demanded that seven countries dependent on Middle Eastern oil send warships to ensure the safety of shipping in the strait.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned that all ships were required to seek Tehran’s permission for passage. However, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi later clarified that the strait remains open to all countries except the United States and its allies.
