Iran mocks Trump for ‘turning to different nations’ to safe Strait of Hormuz – as EU leaders line as much as reject his name for an armada to escort tankers

Iran has mocked Donald Trump for ‘turning to other countries’ to help secure the Strait of Hormuz after European leaders rejected calls to send ships to the strategic passage.   

The Iranian regime has forced shut the strait, a vital passageway through which around 20 per of the world’s oil flows every day, causing an enormous spike in oil prices and sparking fears of a global economic crisis.

The US President asked allies to join a mission to safeguard shipping in the Gulf but Keir Starmer told Donald Trump on Sunday night he wasn’t ready to agree to US demands to ‘send ships’ to protect oil tankers from Iranian attacks. 

France, Germany, Italy and Greece have also said they won’t take part in efforts to reopen the channel.

In his first statement since becoming supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei vowed to continue using the ‘lever of blocking the Strait of Hormuz’ because it is where ‘the enemy is highly vulnerable’.

And Iran’s Foreign ​Minister Abbas Araghchi derided Trump for asking for help to reopen it while demanding Iran surrenders.

He said: ‘They carried out large-scale attacks and again repeated the demand for unconditional surrender. 

‘Today, after roughly 15 days (sic) since the war began, they are turning to other countries for help to ensure the security of the Strait of Hormuz and keep it open.

‘From our perspective, the strait is open; it is only closed to our enemies and to those who carried out unjust aggression against our country.’

Earlier on Monday, Iran repeated the claim the passageway was not closed but merely operating under ‘special conditions’. 

‘Parties not involved in the military aggression against Iran have been able to pass through the Strait of Hormuz in coordination with and with permission from our armed forces,’ Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday.

‘No coastal country in such a situation can allow enemy ships and vessels to pass normally in order to strengthen themselves and carry out aggressive actions against that coastal state,’ he claimed, adding the US, Israel and their allies ‘should naturally not be able to use the Strait of Hormuz to strike Iran.’

On Monday, Sir Keir said the US had ‘massively weakened’ the military of the ‘abhorrent regime in Iran’.

He said the Strait of Hormuz must be reopened to ‘ensure stability in the markets’.

He said he was willing to be part of a ‘viable collective plan’ for the Strait, but that no decisions had been taken yet amid suggestions the UK is only looking at deploying anti-mine drones. ‘This is not easy. It’s not straight forward,’ he added. 

With Iran warning on Sunday of reprisals against the UK, it is understood there are no current plans to send British warships to escort stranded tankers. Instead, ministers are offering mine-hunting drones and missile interceptors as part of an international effort to free up shipping on the route. 

On Saturday, Mr Trump said he wanted Britain, France and China to ‘send ships to the area so that the Strait will no longer be threatened by a nation that has been totally decapitated’.

This demand was repeated by Mike Waltz, US ambassador to the United Nations, who said: ‘The conversation is ongoing. The last time Iran tried to constrain global energy supplies, you had French, United Kingdom forces escorting tankers heading towards their markets. That is what President Trump is calling upon the world.’

Mr Trump upped the ante overnight by linking the response to his demand for ships in the Strait to the future of Nato and support for Ukraine. 

At a press conference on Monday morning, the Prime Minister insisted the UK will not be drawn into a ‘wider war’ in the Middle East today as he knocked back Mr Trump’s call for warships in the Strait of Hormuz. 

The comments came after Mr Trump launched another swipe at Sir Keir over his reluctance to join attacks on Iran.

The premier had a tense call with the president last night, in which he is believed to have signalled Britain will not deploy warships to the Strait. 

Canada, Australia and a host of European countries have also dismissed the prospect.  

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius rejected Trump’s demands and downplayed threats that such a stance by allies would hurt NATO.

‘What does (…) Donald Trump expect a handful or two handfuls of European frigates to do in the Strait of Hormuz that the powerful US navy cannot do?’ he said in Berlin.

‘This is not our war, we have not started it.’  

Asked about Trump’s warning that NATO faces a ‘very bad’ future if its members fail to come to Washington’s aid, Pistorius said he did not anticipate NATO to fall apart over these differences. 

Greece will also not engage in any military operations in the strait, government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said on Monday.

Greece will only participate in the EU’s naval mission charged with protecting ships in the Red Sea, Marinakis told a press conference.

Meanwhile, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said diplomacy was the right way to solve the crisis in the Hormuz Strait and there were no naval missions Italy is involved in that could be extended to the area.

‘As far as Hormuz is concerned I believe diplomacy needs to prevail,’ Tajani said.

Italy is involved in defensive naval missions in the Red Sea ‘but I don’t see any missions that can be extended to Hormuz,’ he added.