Despite his repeated claims that the U.S. is about to or has already achieved victory over Iran, President Donald Trump is demanding that other countries send naval forces to “protect” the Strait of Hormuz. “I’m demanding that these countries come in and protect their own territory, because it is their own territory,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on March 15, claiming the shipping channel is not something the United States needs, because of its own access to oil.
“I’m demanding that these countries come in and protect their own territory, because it is their own territory,” Trump said about the Strait, claiming the shipping channel is not something the United States needs because of its own access to oil, reported the Times of Israel.
So far, the response to Trump’s demand has been less than enthusiastic.
• The U.K. government is examining “all options” to help secure the Strait of Hormuz. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said Britain is already in discussions with allies, including the United States, about how to restore safe navigation through the narrow shipping corridor.
On March 15, Trump said U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer had initially declined to send British aircraft carriers “into harm’s way…. Whether we get support or not, but I can say this, and I said to them: We will remember.”
• In a phone call with the French foreign minister, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi emphasized the responsibility of all countries to avoid actions that could exacerbate tensions in the region amid the ongoing U.S. and Israeli war of aggression against Iran, reported Tasnim. The Iranian foreign minister stated that the sole factor and root cause of the prevailing insecurity in the region and the Strait of Hormuz are the United States and the Zionist regime.
