US allies weigh Iran outreach and sanctions to open Hormuz

A coalition of US allies is preparing a diplomatic push to persuade Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz and weighing potential sanctions on Tehran if the waterway remains closed.

British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper will chair a virtual meeting on Thursday with counterparts from some 35 countries including France, Germany, Italy, Canada, Japan and the United Arab Emirates to discuss a plan to restore freedom of navigation in the strait. The US is not due to attend.

With the conflict now in its second month, re-opening the Strait of Hormuz — which in peacetime handles about a quarter of the world’s seaborne oil trade — has become a priority for governments around the world as energy prices soar and the threat of shortages looms.

The coalition is meeting after US President Donald Trump sowed confusion about his intentions for the conflict, oscillating between threatening to end it without a resolution in Hormuz, to suggesting any ceasefire would require Tehran to first unblock the vital shipping lane for global energy supplies.

The countries convened by Britain will cover three tracks: diplomatic, economic and military, according to people familiar with the matter, who were granted anonymity discussing information that has not been made public.

The focus for now will be on the diplomatic track, coordinating efforts fronted by nations with channels into Tehran, the people said. Should that prove unsuccessful, the coalition would consider economic measures targeting Iran’s oil and shipping industries, they added.

At a later date, the group could set conditions for potential military options if they were needed, the people said. They cautioned that these conversations were at an early stage and would not be the focus of Thursday’s meeting. Any military track would likely only involve some of the countries in the coalition, and for many members it may be focused on helping police the waterway and clearing mines after the fighting had stopped, they said.

It is unclear how seriously any economic and military options proposed by the coalition would be taken by Iran, given the country is already heavily sanctioned. Moreover, many of the allied group’s members have so far refused to support the US-Israeli operation.

Starmer has ruled out joining the war and while French President Emmanuel Macron said on a visit to Tokyo Wednesday that European, Asian and Middle Eastern countries “can play a role in ensuring that transit through the Strait of Hormuz proceeds smoothly,” he insisted “this is not a military option at all.” However, the UAE has been lobbying for an effort to reopen the strait by force, The Wall Street Journal reported.

“We will assess all viable diplomatic and political measures that we can take to restore freedom of navigation, guarantee the safety of trapped ships and seafarers and resume the movement of vital commodities,” Starmer said at a news briefing in London on Wednesday. “We will also convene our military planners to look at how we can marshal our capabilities and make the strait accessible and safe after the fighting has stopped.”

The meeting on Thursday is the first since 35 nations signed up to a statement committing to pursuing a plan to reopen Hormuz two weeks ago. It will likely be followed up with working-level meetings to discuss further details, a person familiar with the matter said. Separately, UK military planners are expected to meet next week to discuss their options, another person said.

Starmer made his remarks moments after Trump launched a fresh salvo of criticism at American allies in Europe. In an interview with the Telegraph, he dismissed NATO as a “paper tiger” and said Starmer “can do whatever he wants. It doesn’t matter.” Trump has repeatedly railed against European nations — and the UK in particular — for their refusal to get involved in the offensive against Iran.

Responding to those remarks, Starmer said “NATO is the single most effective military alliance the world has ever seen, and it has kept us safe for many decades, and we are fully committed to NATO.”

The British premier said the UK must deepen its relationship with Europe, outlining plans for another summit with EU counterparts in the coming weeks that would seek to undo some of the “deep damage” done by Brexit.

“It is increasingly clear that as the world continues down this volatile path, our long-term national interest requires closer partnership with our allies in Europe, and with the European Union,” he said. “We want to be more ambitious.”

The prime minister sidestepped an initial chance to respond to Trump’s criticism saying “the US and UK are close allies have been for a very, very long time.” He did, however, allude to the “good deal of pressure” exerted on him by Trump to change his position in relation to joining the war.

With the Middle East conflict stretching into its second month, Starmer convened Wednesday’s news conference to spell out what the UK is doing to help ordinary Britons. He noted that fuel duty has been frozen until September, but that he is “monitoring that situation daily.”

“No matter how fierce this storm, we are well place to weather it,” he said. “We have a long-term plan to emerge from it a stronger, a more secure nation.”

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— With assistance from Tom Rees and Ania Nussbaum.