Strait of Hormuz, hypothesis of EU action. “No” from London and Berlin to Trump

There are “proposals on the table” regarding possible European moves, and at the Foreign Affairs Council we will discuss “whether it is possible to change” the mandate of the EU Aspides mission in this sense, Kallas said, entering the meeting between EU ministers. “The question is whether member states are willing to actually use this mission: if we want to have security in this region, then it would be easier to already use the operation we have there and maybe modify it a little,” he adds.

“Nato cannot take responsibility”

And today, after the appeal and the outgoing launched by Donald Trump to NATO to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, comes the response from Great Britain and Germany.

“The war in Iran has nothing to do with NATO”, German government spokesman Stefan Kornelius said at a press conference. “This is not NATO’s war,” Kornelius added, underlining that “NATO is an alliance for the defense of its own territory. Furthermore, there is no mandate for NATO’s deployment” in Iran and the region. The expansion of the war, he continued, poses serious risks for allies in the Middle East and the region. Shortly before, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul stated that he “does not believe that NATO can assume responsibility for the Strait of Hormuz”. “If this were the case, then NATO bodies would deal with it appropriately,” he added, underlining that Germany supports imposing sanctions on “those who are responsible” for blocking the crucial trade passage.

The prime minister is on the same line Keir Starmer. The UK is working with allies on “a sustainable collective plan” to restore freedom of navigation for ships in the Strait of Hormuz. But “I want to be clear, it will not be and has never been thought of as a NATO mission”. “It will have to be an alliance of partners, which is why we are working with partners both in Europe and in the Gulf and with the United States, it is important that we continue in this direction”, added the British Prime Minister, underlining that his objective is for this plan to involve “as many allies as possible”.

To those who asked him more about the nature of this plan, Starmer replied evasively: “We are discussing, with European, Gulf and US partners, and obviously we have to evaluate many options. We already have autonomous mine clearance systems in the region, we evaluate options and experience, but we work with allies”.

Tehran insists: “Hormuz closed only for our enemies”

The Strait of Hormuz is open, but not to the countries that attacked Iran. This is the message reiterated by Tehran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, who commented on the United States’ request to its allies to contribute to the security of the Gulf sea route. “The US has conducted large-scale attacks and continues to repeat the request for unconditional surrender. Now, about 15 days after the start of the war, they are turning to other countries asking for help to guarantee the security of the Strait of Hormuz”, declared Araghchi, quoted by CNN.

According to the head of Iranian diplomacy, from Tehran’s point of view “the strait is open, it is closed only to our enemies and to those who have committed unjust aggression against our country”.