French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday (local time) that France and its allies were planning a “defensive” mission to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and warned that an attack on Cyprus was an attack on Europe, AFP reported.
Macron’s statement came as he visited Cyprus to discuss regional security and demonstrate “full solidarity” with the island, which suffered the first drone strike of the US-Israeli-Iran war on European soil. The visit comes days after he dispatched a warship to the eastern Mediterranean island nation after a Shahed drone struck a British airbase on its southern coast last week.
He said: “When Cyprus is attacked, it is Europe that is attacked. We are bound together by strategic partnerships.”
Macron’s remark on the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz
The French president said during the visit that the aim of the mission would be to escort container ships and tankers to gradually reopen the Strait of Hormuz, after the end of the hottest phase of the conflict. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) closed the Strait of Hormuz days after the United States and Israel launched strikes targeting key military and naval forces, killing several of its top commanders and former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Commenting on the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, Macron said in Paphos that it is essential for international trade, but also for the flow of gas and oil that must be able to leave the Middle East region again.
European allies to put together a mission
Macron, speaking alongside Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, said European and non-European allies would put together a “purely defensive, purely support mission”.
On Monday (local time), the European Union said it was ready to “strengthen” all its operations to protect maritime traffic in the conflict-torn Middle East. Reports suggest the European Union is in discussions to boost its naval mission in the Red Sea after the US-Israeli strikes sparked a wider regional military confrontation.
US-Israel attacks Iran
On February 28, the US and Israel launched “Operation Epic Fury” and “Operation Rising Lion” against Iran, days after talks between Washington and Tehran on its nuclear program stalled. The strikes prompted Tehran to retaliate, after which it launched strikes on Israeli and US military bases in the Middle East.
The conflict, now in its tenth day, has escalated and oil prices have risen to record highs after Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz and targeted several oil facilities across the Middle East. Loud explosions were heard in Middle Eastern cities including Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Manama, Riyadh and Doha, while drones and missiles were intercepted by Gulf countries.
The conflict has also sent the aviation sector into a tailspin. Amid airspace restrictions in the Middle East, hundreds of flights have been canceled over the past week, with many carriers continuing to suspend flights until the situation improves. Thousands of stranded passengers from around the world are also stranded in the Middle East as Gulf countries debate the next course of action.
