French taskforce is streaming towards the Gulf after Macron ordered Navy ships in ‘unprecedented’ move as conflict in the Middle East drives up oil prices
Emmanuel Macron has ordered French Navy ships to the Strait of Hormuz in an ‘unprecedented’ bid to combat skyrocketing oil prices.
The French President will deploy eight frigates, two amphibious helicopter carriers and the country’s flagship Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier to the Middle East.
He said on Monday: ‘We are in the process of establishing a defensive, purely escort mission with European and non-European states to provide escort as soon as possible for container ships and tankers to gradually reopen the Strait of Hormuz.’
The passage, through which 20 percent of the world’s natural gas and oil passes, was almost completely closed after Iran vowed to open fire on passing ships.
The UK has seen gas returns fall from 18,000 GWh to just 6,700 GWh; The UK currently pays the highest wholesale gas price in Europe.
However, Sir Keir Starmer, who has been subjected to harsh criticism from Donald Trump, has not yet deployed a single Royal Navy ship to the Middle East. Meanwhile, HMS Dragon has still not sailed from Portsmouth to begin defending British-dominated base areas in Cyprus.
It is understood HMS Prince of Wales has been upgraded to advanced readiness and the crew is ready to depart within five days.
However, if deployed, the aircraft carrier may need a French escort due to the current shortage of ships in the Royal Navy.
Emmanuel Macron has ordered French Navy ships to the Strait of Hormuz in an ‘unprecedented’ bid to combat skyrocketing oil prices (The French President, centre-left, is pictured on the bridge of a warship on Monday)
France is preparing to send eight frigates, two amphibious helicopter carriers and the country’s flagship Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier (pictured) to the Middle East
An aircraft carrier must be accompanied by two or three warships, usually destroyers or frigates, and an attack submarine; However, it appears that no decision has been made on whether the aircraft carrier will be deployed or escorted.
The Royal Navy has six destroyers in total but only one, HMS Dragon, is thought to be ready for action.
It comes as pressure mounts on Sir Keir, who steadfastly refused to join the war on Iran on 28 February.
The decision sparked a rift between the Labor leader and Trump, who told the Briton “there is no Winston Churchill” in a bombshell press conference last week.
The two men held crisis talks on Sunday afternoon for the first time since the fight began, after harshly criticizing each other for their contradictory stances.
In a surprising outburst late on Saturday, Trump lashed out at Sir Keir for accepting defense aid only when Washington was attacking Tehran alongside Israel.
Using his Truth Social platform, he warned that the US would ‘remember’ the lack of support from ‘our once great ally’ and suggested that the Prime Minister was trying to join in after the war had already been won.
In response, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper responded by saying ‘diplomacy via social media is not our style’ and said it was not in the UK’s interests to ‘outsource our foreign policy’.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves later called on both sides to ‘de-escalate tensions’ at a meeting in the House of Commons on Monday, where she expressed fears motorists could face record fuel prices.
Experts suggest that petrol could rise to £2 per litre, while Britons are being urged to drive less due to expectations that conflicts in the Middle East will lead to rising front-line prices.
Saudi Arabia, the largest oil supplier in the region, is said to be cutting production at two major fields in the latest negative sign from the war.
Sir Keir Starmer, who has come under harsh criticism from Donald Trump, has yet to deploy a single Royal Navy ship to the Middle East
The UK is understood to be preparing the aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales (pictured) for a possible deployment
The Strait of Hormuz is almost completely closed due to Iran’s targeting of the Gulf region (tankers were seen off the Iranian coast last week)
The barrel price of oil rose above $100 for the first time in years, and supply was threatened by attacks on the infrastructure of major producers in the region.
Ms Reeves said she was ‘taking action to ensure people pay the lowest possible price at the pump’ and also promised to hold a meeting of MPs focused on heating oil prices.
He added: ‘I recognize that households using heating oil face unique challenges and that is why I have asked the Treasury Secretary to lead discussions with officials and rural and Northern Ireland MPs to explore further steps we can take, and these meetings will take place on Wednesday.’
Trump told The Times of Israel on Monday that he and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will make a “joint decision” on when to end the war with Iran.
The president also suggested that the Islamic Republic of Iran would have destroyed Israel if he and Netanyahu had not intervened.
‘Iran was going to destroy Israel and everything around it,’ he said. ‘We worked together. ‘We destroyed a country that wanted to destroy Israel.’
Trump added about the possibility of an end to the war: ‘I think it’s a bit mutual. We (Trump and Netanyahu) were talking. I will make a decision at the right time, but everything will be taken into account.’
