Britain and France voiced hope that military plans to secure the Strait of Hormuz were coming together and would succeed in restoring trade flows through the vital passage.
At a two-day meeting in London, involving more than 44 countries from every continent, military planners discussed the practicalities of a multinational mission led by the UK and France to protect navigation in the key waterway following a sustainable ceasefire. British Defence Minister John Healey and his French counterpart, Catherine Vautrin, said in a joint statement that they were confident that real progress could be made.
Healey said that the aim is to form a defensive, multinational mission that will strengthen the confidence of commercial shipping and, if necessary, clear mines and protect vessels when the hostilities end. He called for practical military plans, saying millions of people were relying on a successful outcome from the meeting.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said more than a dozen countries have agreed to participate in the mission to free up navigation in Hormuz.
Iran said on Wednesday it would not reopen the Strait of Hormuz as long as the United States continued to blockade Iranian ports.
