Author: Tim Kelly and Jarrett Renshaw
TOKYO/PALM BEACH, Fla. (Reuters) – Japan and Australia said on Monday they did not plan to send naval ships to the Middle East to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz, after U.S. President Donald Trump called on allies to form a coalition to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
As the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran creates turmoil in the Middle East and jolts global energy markets into its third week, Trump insisted on Sunday that countries heavily reliant on Gulf oil had a responsibility to protect the strait, through which 20% of the world’s energy passes.
Asian markets opened cautiously, with Brent crude rising more than 1% to top $104.50, and regional stocks were mostly weaker after Trump’s remarks about letting other countries help defend the strait.
“I’m asking these countries to step in and protect their territory because this is their territory,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One flying from Florida to Washington. “This is where they get their energy.”
Trump said his administration has contacted seven countries but did not identify them. In social media posts over the weekend, he hoped China, France, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom and other countries would participate.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said on Monday that Japan was constrained by its renunciation of war constitution and had no plans to send naval ships to the Middle East for escort.
“We have not yet made any decision on sending escort ships. We are continuing to study what Japan can do independently and what it can do within the legal framework,” Takaichi told parliament.
Australia, another important U.S. ally in the Indo-Pacific, said it had not received a request and would not send naval ships to assist in reopening the strait.
“We know how important this is, but that’s not what we’re being asked to contribute and that’s not what we’re contributing,” Catherine King, a member of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s cabinet, told state broadcaster ABC.
Without China’s support, Trump may delay trip to Beijing
Trump told the Financial Times on Sunday that he wanted China to help clear the strait ahead of a meeting with President Xi Jinping in Beijing at the end of this month and that his trip could be delayed if China did not provide assistance.
“I think China should help as well because 90 percent of China’s oil comes from the Strait,” Trump said. “If China doesn’t provide support in the Gulf, we may delay it,” he said of his visit.
China’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment.
Trump also stepped up pressure on European allies to help protect the strait, warning that NATO faced a “very bad” future if members did not provide aid to Washington.
European Union foreign ministers will discuss boosting a small naval mission in the Middle East on Monday but are not expected to decide on expanding its role into the blocked Strait of Hormuz, diplomats and officials said.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer discussed the need to reopen the strait with Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, a Downing Street spokesman said on Sunday, while South Korea said it would carefully review Trump’s request.
Although some Iranian ships continue to pass through, and some vessels from other countries have successfully passed through, the channel has been closed to most of the world’s tanker traffic since the United States and Israel launched an intensive bombing campaign against Iran on February 28.
Drone causes fire at Dubai airport and disrupts traffic
Drone strikes continued to threaten Gulf states on Monday despite repeated claims by U.S. authorities to have destroyed Iran’s military capabilities.
Authorities in Dubai said they had brought the fire under control after a drone struck a fuel tank, but temporarily halted flights at the main international hub airport. Saudi Arabia intercepted 34 drones in its eastern region within an hour, state media reported. No injuries were reported in either incident.
Responding to economic uncertainty caused by high oil prices, U.S. officials on Sunday predicted that the war with Iran would be over within weeks and energy costs would fall, even as Iran claimed it remained “stable and strong” and ready to defend itself.
Trump threatened more attacks over the weekend on the island of Khargah, Iran’s main oil export hub, and had previously said Iran wanted to negotiate, but Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi disputed that earlier on Sunday.
“We never asked for a ceasefire, we never even asked for negotiations,” Arachi told CBS’s “Face the Nation.” “We are ready to defend ourselves for as long as necessary.”
(Reporting by Maya Gebeily in Dubai, Emily Rose in Jerusalem and Jarrett Renshaw in Palm Beach, Florida; Additional reporting by Reuters bureau; Writing by Lincoln Feast; Editing by Michael Perry)
