Inside the UK-led mission to open the Strait of Hormuz

Preparations are underway for a multinational mission led by the UK, which will include the deployment of warships, Typhoon jets and mine hunting equipment to the Middle East.

Britain, along with France, set out to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and enlisted the support of dozens of allies to do so when conditions allowed.

However, retired brigadier general and military analyst Ben Barry said that Iran would pose a threat to the UK whether the conflicts in the region stopped or not.

“No one can claim that this is risk-free,” he said. Independent. “If an international mission must do this, it must have sufficient firepower so that it can not only protect civilian shipping in the Strait of Hormuz but also impose disproportionate costs on any Iranian military capabilities that might attempt to attack them.”

This comes after Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, issued a stern warning to Britain and France at the weekend, saying any warships in the Strait of Hormuz “will be met with a decisive and immediate response”.

What is the Strait of Hormuz mission?

The multinational mission to secure the Strait of Hormuz was announced by Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron last month after the two leaders brought together 51 countries for an international summit.

It aims to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and protect merchant ships and merchant shipping operators while conducting mine-clearing operations.

The Ministry of Defense announced on Tuesday that it would deploy mine-hunting equipment, state-of-the-art counter-drone systems, Typhoon jets and HMS Dragon, which is already en route to the region.

In March, Iran blockaded the waterway, which carries more than one fifth of the world’s oil, as a result of attacks by the USA and Israel.

The closure of the waterway has caused energy prices to rise and caused serious disruptions in supply chains.

Despite a month-long ceasefire between the United States and Iran, both countries have accused each other of attacking ships in the waterway.

Sir Keir said the mission to reopen the strait would only take place once the hostilities ended.

Who is involved?

John Healey, along with his French counterpart, co-chaired a meeting of more than 40 countries on Monday for the multinational mission’s first meeting of defense ministers.

Countries such as Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Canada, Australia, South Korea and Iraq participated in the discussions.

France has sent the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle to the region, while Australia has promised a high-tech surveillance plane.

“The UK and France are working to ensure that the military plan includes as many partners as possible and brings together each country’s expertise to support our common interests,” the Ministry of Defense said.

Does Iran pose a threat to Britain?

According to Mr Barry, the size of the military capacity the UK has deployed indicates that Iran poses a serious threat.

Mr Barry said Britain and France would need large-scale contributions from their allies before trying to reopen the strait.

“Iran still has a lot of military capabilities that could threaten shipping. They still seem to have a lot of drones. They still have cruise missiles, and there is a risk of Iranian artillery and mortar fire in the northern part of the Strait of Hormuz.”

“Any international mission will be founded on the understanding that it will be able to defend itself in the event of a breakdown of the ceasefire and that it will have sufficient military capacity to effectively defend itself to deter attacks by Iran.”

He said the mission would require a large force with “the full range of modern weapons” and that Britain would have to rely on many other countries to provide military capability. “In my opinion, you need thousands of people, not hundreds, to make this work.”

The Ministry of Defense did not say how many personnel would be deployed.

“I think what the UK is proposing is only a small fraction of what is needed for such a mission,” he added. “This would be [require] warships that can defend with both anti-surface weapons and weapons that can shoot down aircraft, missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles.

“The planes also need to be able to shoot down drones and gather early warning, as well as shoot down weapons fired from Iran if necessary. A lot of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities are required, both on ships and in the skies over the Strait of Hormuz.”