Type 45 destroyer HMS Dragon is being sent to the Middle East to be ready to join an international mission to safeguard shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed
A Royal Navy vessel is being deployed to the Middle East to stand ready to participate in an international operation to protect shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
Type 45 destroyer HMS Dragon will “pre-position” in the area, prepared to join the UK and French-led initiative once fighting ends between Iran and US-Israeli forces. A delicate ceasefire remains in effect, though Friday’s strikes saw US forces target two Iranian tankers attempting to violate the blockade imposed by Donald Trump.
The planned operation backed by Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron would feature a coalition of countries committed to ensuring freedom of navigation in the strait, a crucial passage for worldwide oil and gas shipments alongside other commodities including fertiliser.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: “We can confirm that HMS Dragon will deploy to the Middle East to pre-position ahead of any future multinational mission to protect international shipping when conditions allow them to transit the Strait of Hormuz.
“The pre-positioning of HMS Dragon is part of prudent planning that will ensure that the UK is ready, as part of a multinational coalition jointly led by the UK and France, to secure the strait, when conditions allow.”
The choice to relocate HMS Dragon from the eastern Mediterranean, where it had been protecting British bases on Cyprus, will enable the destroyer to participate instantly should the protective operation in the strait be activated.
Meanwhile, reports of a mystery UFO over the Strait of Hormuz have resurfaced after the US Department of War released a fresh batch of declassified UFO files on Friday (May 8). The documents, described as historic by supporters, landed amid heightened tension in the region, with US and Iranian forces reportedly exchanging fire.
Among the newly released material is an account from September 2020 in which a military operator reported an Unidentified Anomalous Phenomenon (UAP) hovering at around 1,800 feet over the Strait of Hormuz. The strait is one of the world’s most sensitive shipping choke points.
More recently, viral clips circulating earlier this year have been claimed to show a “strange glowing object” moving silently and changing direction over Iranian cities including Tehran and Rasht.
Another report from March 2026 described a glowing ball shifting from blue to orange over Karaj, minutes before airstrikes. The timing has consequently sparked political rows in Washington, USA.
Amongst the criticism, former GOP congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, accused the administration of spreading “propaganda”, the Independent reported. She wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter): “I really don’t care about the UFO files. I just don’t.
“I’m so sick of the ‘look at the shiny object’ propaganda while they wage foreign wars, let rapist and pedophiles run free, and ruin the value of our dollar.” When asked about her comments, White House spokesperson Davis Ingle told the Independent: “Marjorie ‘Quitter’ Greene has never met a conspiracy theory she didn’t embrace.”
Ingle continued: “The former Congresswoman disgracefully quit on her constituents during the middle of her term. Now, she should also quit spreading Fake News.”
US President Donald Trump has reportedly said the release was ordered to promote “transparency”, while critics have claimed it risks becoming a distraction from the escalating stand-off with Iran. The alleged sightings are also being discussed in the context of military operations in the strait.
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