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LAST UPDATE | 2 hrs ago
SIX COUNTRIES HAVE said they are ready to contribute to efforts to re-open the Strait of Hormuz to maritime traffic, after US President Donald Trump insisted earlier this week that he did not want their help.
Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Italy and Japan said today in a joint statement that they were ready “to contribute to appropriate efforts to ensure safe passage through the Strait”.
They also welcomed the commitment “of nations who are engaging in preparatory planning”, without providing further details.
Iran’s chokehold on the strait, through which roughly 20% of the world’s oil passed before the US and Israel launched their war, has led to skyrocketing fuel prices around the world.
Iran has kept up attacks on vessels in the Persian Gulf, although it has said it is allows ships from some countries to make safe passage.
A projectile hit a vessel off the coast of the United Arab Emirates today, causing a fire, a British maritime security agency said.
Trump had asked for the assistance of US allies to wrest control of the strait from Iran, but then later said that their help was not needed after his requests did not receive immediate approval. He took particular aim at Nato allies while speaking to the media during Taoiseach Micheál Martin’s White House visit on St Patrick’s Day.
French President Emmanuel Macron announced last week that France and some of its allies were preparing a mission to ensure the safe passage of cargo through the strait, but did not go into detail at the time.
Trump said today that he had received an assurance of support from Japan.
“I believe that, based on statements (which) were given to us yesterday, the day before yesterday, having to do with Japan, they are really stepping up to the plate, yes, unlike Nato,” Trump told reporters as he met Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
The price of oil, which was already over $100 a barrel, surged by 10% today while the price of European gas also jumped by more than a third after Iran carried out attacks on Qatar’s huge Ras Laffan LNG facility.
Those Iranian attacks came after Israel struck Iran’s South Pars gas field.
That attack has led to a semi-public rift between the United States and Israel.
Trump said that Israel had carried out the attack without his government’s knowledge, even through US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has repeatedly said the two militaries are acting in close cooperation in their attacks on Iran.
Israel has remained silent about responsibility but today, Reuters reported that Israeli officials said the attack on the gas field was coordinated with the US, adding that they were not surprised by Trump’s comments.
Both the US and Iran have today issued threats of more attacks on energy infrastructure if either side strikes the gas fields again.
Trump threatened to destroy the South Pars gas field if there were further attacks against Qatar’s Ras Laffan facility.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, meanwhilem warned neighbouring nations in the Persian Gulf that their oil and gas industries would be “completely destroyed” if Israel or the United States conducted any further attacks against Iranian energy infrastructure.
“Our response will be much more severe,” the Guards said in a statement.
Energy infrastructure in other countries in the Persian Gulf has been struck by drone and missiles attacks, including in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia, a longtime regional rival of Iran and close US ally, has not ruled out military action in response to repeated missile and drone attacks, Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said.
“The kingdom is not going to succumb to pressure, and on the contrary, this pressure will backfire… and certainly, as we have stated quite clearly, we have reserved the right to take military actions if deemed necessary,” he said.
The United States today announced the approval of $16.46 billion in military sales to the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait.
With fuel prices continuing to rise, the US has said it may try to boost oil supply by getting it from an unlikely source, Iran.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said that Washington might “unsanction” Iranian oil that is already at sea, which would mirror a move it made last week to lift sanctions on Russian oil that has already been shipped.
The US could also release more oil from its strategic reserves in an effort to bring down prices, he said.
Meanwhile, the US Department of Defence has asked the White House to request $200 billion in supplementary funding for the war, according to an official who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The request comes on top of extra funding the Defence Department already received last year thanks to Trump’s big tax cuts bill.
The request for additional funding would need to be approved by the US Congress.
With reporting from AFP and Press Association.
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