UK, Allies Refuse Trump Call to Send Warships as Strait of Hormuz Blocked

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has rejected a request from US President Donald Trump to deploy British warships to the Strait of Hormuz, which is currently blocked to commercial shipping amid a rapidly escalating conflict with Iran.

The crisis follows a dramatic escalation in the Middle East after the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran on Feb. 28 that killed its supreme leader, Ali Khamenei.

Iran has since vowed to shut down the strategic waterway, one of the world’s most important oil routes.

“Any vessel whose oil cargo or the vessel itself belongs to the United States, the Zionist regime or their hostile allies will be considered legitimate targets,” Iran’s central military command, Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, said in a statement carried by state television.

Despite Washington’s push to assemble an international naval force to secure the passage, key US allies appear reluctant to take part.

According to The Daily Telegraph, Starmer’s government is not prepared to send British naval vessels into the strait.

UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said London is “intensively looking” at what could be done to help reopen the route, including deploying unmanned systems to search for naval mines, but stopped short of committing to a warship deployment.

Other allies are also holding back. France, Germany and South Korea have likewise declined to send naval vessels, amid concerns the conflict could drag on indefinitely.

On Saturday, Trump urged China, France, Japan, South Korea and the United Kingdom to dispatch warships to the Persian Gulf “so that the Hormuz Strait will no longer be a threat by a nation that has been totally decapitated.”

Paris quickly rejected the request. France’s armed forces minister said the country would maintain a “defensive and protective” posture and would not be drawn into a war led by the United States and Israel.

Germany has also expressed doubts about expanding the European Union’s naval operations. Johann Wadephul, Germany’s foreign minister, said he was “very skeptical” that extending the EU’s Aspides naval mission – currently focused on protecting commercial traffic in the Red Sea – to the Strait of Hormuz would improve security.

Meanwhile, Japan and Australia have said they do not plan to deploy naval ships to escort commercial vessels through the strait, according to Reuters.

Despite the reluctance among allies, the Trump administration is expected to announce this week that several countries have agreed to form a coalition to escort ships through the strait, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing US officials. The countries involved have not been publicly identified.

At the same time, reports have emerged that Iranian authorities may allow vessels linked to China to pass through the strait in an effort to ease pressure on one of Tehran’s key strategic partners. Some ships are reportedly switching their transponder signals to appear connected to China.

Washington has already begun reinforcing its military presence. Trump has dispatched a detachment of US Marines from the Far East to the Persian Gulf, raising the prospect of American ground forces becoming involved in the confrontation with Iran – a move that could mark a major escalation.

Tensions between Washington and London have also flared during the crisis. Trump previously criticized Starmer for refusing to allow British bases in the Middle East to be used for strikes on Iran during the opening phase of the war, saying he “never thought he would see such a thing from the United Kingdom.”

The two leaders spoke by phone on March 15 and discussed the “importance of reopening the Strait of Hormuz,” according to The Telegraph.