War in the Middle East: six countries, including France, say they are “ready to contribute” to securing the Strait of Hormuz

France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Japan say they are “ready to contribute” to securing the Strait of Hormuz. “We demand an immediate and general moratorium on attacks against civilian infrastructure, particularly oil and gas installations” in the Gulf, these countries indicated in a joint statement, published after the Iranian strikes on the Ras Laffan gas site in Qatar, the world’s second largest exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG).

“We condemn in the strongest terms the recent attacks carried out by Iran against unarmed commercial ships in the Gulf, attacks against civilian infrastructure, including oil and gas installations, and the de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz by Iranian forces,” add the six countries, before declaring themselves “ready to contribute to the necessary efforts to guarantee the security of passage through the strait.” On Tuesday, the United Kingdom said it was working on a plan with some of its partners in Europe and the Gulf, as well as the United States, to restore maritime traffic in the strait.

Measures to “stabilize energy markets”

Tehran’s virtual paralysis of the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil production but also liquefied natural gas normally passes, has led to a sharp increase in the price of hydrocarbons, with a global economic impact. The International Energy Agency (IEA), which represents oil-consuming countries, released 400 million barrels of its strategic crude reserves in order to calm markets, and said it was ready on Monday to release more stocks. In their press release, the six countries affirm that they will take “other measures to stabilize energy markets, in particular by collaborating with certain producing countries to increase their production”, without giving further details.

In recent days, Iran has allowed the passage of some ships from countries it considers allies, while warning that it would block those from countries deemed hostile. A crisis meeting of the World Maritime Organization (IMO) is taking place over two days on Wednesday and Thursday in London, with the stated objective of finding “practical measures” to ensure security in the Strait of Hormuz, where 20,000 sailors are currently stranded on some 3,200 ships.

Emmanuel Macron wants fighting to stop during Eid

For his part, Emmanuel Macron denounced Thursday a “reckless escalation” in the Middle East after the strikes against hydrocarbon production sites. The French president called for “stopping” the fighting during Eid-El-Fitr, the holiday which marks the end of Ramadan. “Several (…) Gulf countries were hit for the first time on their production capacities, in the same way that Iran had been hit,” noted the French president upon his arrival at a European summit in Brussels, calling for “direct” discussions between Americans and Iranians on this issue.

During the night from Wednesday to Thursday, Emmanuel Macron proposed a “moratorium on strikes targeting civilian infrastructure, in particular energy and water infrastructure” after speaking to American President Donald Trump and the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim ben Hamad Al-Thani. These strikes continued after this call.

The head of state indicated that he wanted direct discussions between the Americans and the Iranians. “I think that all minds should calm down and the fighting should stop at least for a few days to try to give negotiations another chance,” thanks to the end of Ramadan celebrated in the coming days, insisted Emmanuel Macron.